Interactive art and psychedelia intertwine in Meow Wolf, a renowned brand that connects communities of EDM fans and art lovers alike. But for employees at the immersive events company and members of the Meow Wolf Workers Collective union, unexpected challenges are emerging.
The company will lay off 165 employees and cut expenses by 10%, according to the Santa Fe reporter. Meow Wolf laid off 201 employees at the beginning of the pandemic, about four years ago. They have since expanded to an additional location in Texas, hosted their own Vortex Festival, and hosted a variety of electronic music shows in Denver and Santa Fe, among other major cities.
“There is no easy way to break this news,” Meow Wolf CEO José Tolosa reportedly wrote in an internal company email. “On Wednesday [April 17]”Meow Wolf will announce that we are cutting expenses by approximately 10% and reducing our workforce to right-size the business, fund our growth and continue to drive our future success.”
Despite layoffs and budget cuts, the company will continue to expand, according to the email. “Expansion remains an important part of our business strategy and these changes will allow us to continue growing in a smart and sustainable way,” Tolosa added.
The Meow Wolf Workers Collective (MWWC) union expressed frustration at the news.
“We believe the company knows it is violating the collective bargaining agreement and is doing it anyway,” MWWC President Roz Rosvold said in a statement. “There is a process outlined in our agreement by which they must handle layoffs and they are not participating in that process.”
“I would say this is just the cost of doing business, and we're not surprised at this point,” added MWWC secretary-treasurer Jerome Morrison. “This is really draconian because we spent a year negotiating a contract only to be completely ignored.”
FOLLOW MAULA WOLF:
Facebook: facebook.com/meowwolf.sf
X: x.com/MeowWolf
Instagram: instagram.com/meow__wolf
thanks to our partners at edm.com
