After months of twists and turns, Dallas Black Dance Theatre has reached a settlement with the National Labor Relations Board.
The settlement means 10 fired dancers and three whose offers of employment were rescinded, will receive over $560,000 from the dance company in back pay, front pay and compensation for damages incurred through the loss of their employment.
The settlement came Sunday evening hours before a hearing with the dance company was expected to start on Monday morning.
DBDT said in a statement the settlement will allow the company to move past its differences with the American Guild of Musical artists, the union representing fired dancers.
“The DBDT Board believes this settlement is the best path for our organization, avoiding costly litigation that could have diverted resources from our mission,” the statement said. “We are confident this collaborative effort marks the start of a stronger partnership and a brighter future for AGMA, DBDT, and its artists.”
Martha Kinsella, legal counsel with the union, said the monthslong back and forth is a story about worker power with the dancers spearheading efforts.
“It’s been a really extraordinary and multifaceted campaign that has brought justice for the dancers in a really remarkable, very short timeframe,” Kinsella said.
In the settlement, Dallas Black Dance Theatre has agreed to pay each of the dancers about $3,000 to $13,000 in back pay. Instead of being reinstated at the company, all dancers opted for front pay ranging from about $6,000 to $62,000 per dancer. The front pay would cover the payment dancers expected to receive in future contracts after the dance company gave them letters of intent.
The settlement also requires the dance company to compensate dancers for former and future damages that may have been caused by their firing or actions taken against them by the dance company. That compensation ranges from about $300 to $4,000 for each dancer.
“This has always been bigger than us,” said a written statement from former DBDT dancers Sean J. Smith, Sierra Jones, Micah Isaiah, Terrell Rogers, Gillian Clifford, Dominiq Luckie, Nile Ruff, Derick McKoy, Jr., Elijah Lancaster, and Brianne Sellars. “While this settlement allows our lives to go on and gives us some sense of much-needed closure, we recognize that the fight for accountability and justice at DBDT is far from over.”
The dance company must also issue letters of apology to the dancers and is required to work with a NLRB agent to train managers, supervisors and employees.
Previously, the dance company said dancers were fired for violating certain company policies. Now, DBDT will be required to rescind any discipline or discharges previously sent to the dancers or former employees as a result of certain handbook rules.
DBDT will also be required to publicize a seven-page notice explaining employees’ rights and outlining what the company will and will not do to abide by the settlement and the National Labor Relations Act. The document will be emailed to former and current employees and read to employees in a meeting.
News of the settlement could impact the Dallas City Council’s decision on funding to the dance company. On Oct. 23, the council paused roughly $248,000 in funding to DBDT.
In last week’s meeting of the City Council’s Quality of Life, Arts, and Culture Committee, the majority of members expressed an interest in completely redistributing next year’s funding to other arts and culture organizations that serve African, Latino, Asian, Arab and Native American communities.
Council member Adam Bazaldua said he doesn’t want to prolong a decision on the issue while legal proceedings play out.
“The reality is we have some concern. We feel that there is an organization that does not necessarily, with what we know, represent the priorities of the city of Dallas. What I do know is that we’ve got a lot of starving artists out there that these funds could be helping that we know align with our city.”
The City Council will discuss funding to the dance company on Wednesday.
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