Workers at National Nordic Museum Announce Unionization with Overwhelming Majority Support

On Tuesday, workers at the National Nordic Museum announced their intent to unionize with the Communications Workers of America Local 7800. The union – National Nordic Museum Workers United (NNMWU) – has requested voluntary recognition from Museum management with over 75% of eligible employees signing union authorization cards in the days leading up to the announcement.

“We’re hopeful that Museum leadership will voluntarily recognize our union and work with us to ensure a safe and equitable workplace for all staff members,” said Maddie Arthur, organizing committee member and Marketing Assistant at the National Nordic Museum. “We believe unionizing is a crucial next step toward building a strong, transparent, and inclusive organization.”

NNMWU represents Museum workers in visitor services, retail services, curatorial and education, operations, marketing, fundraising, and special event departments— all of whom deliver on the Museum’s mission by producing world-class exhibitions, public programs, events, and community partnerships. 

Workers cite a range of unresolved issues that led to their decision to unionize. According to NNMWU, these include a lack of strategic clarity from leadership, chronic understaffing, unsustainable workloads, and stagnant wages and professional development opportunities despite rising living costs and unmet promises of improvement.

Nordic values of social justice, openness, trust, sustainability, and innovation guide the mission and vision of the Museum. Workers claim recent decisions by leadership have not aligned with these values and demand changes in the institution’s internal practices and workplace culture to ensure the future success of the institution.

A steady erosion of trust and morale has intensified with recent organizational changes. The Museum hired a new Executive Director and CEO, Lāth Carlson, in September 2024. Under new management, workers say that leadership’s operational priorities neglect fundraising, visitor retention, collections care, and community engagement.

NNMWU states this shift in priorities has resulted in layoffs and resignations, low staff morale, a loss of institutional memory, and the alienation of the Museum’s members and community. The union demands these concerns no longer be ignored, and notes that these issues have put at risk both worker well-being and their ability to deliver on the Museum’s mission.

“In the past year, we’ve experienced a growing disconnect between the Museum’s stated values and our lived workplace realities,” said Taylor Morgan, the Museum’s Senior Grant Writer and a member of the union’s organizing committee. “We are committed to the long-term success of this institution, but we need a seat at the table to make that possible.”

The union has achieved supermajority support among staff, and workers filed for an election with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). NNMWU called on the Museum’s leadership and Board of Trustees to voluntarily recognize the union by August 26. The union believes voluntary recognition would signify the desire to meaningfully collaborate and avoid an expensive, drawn-out election process.

The National Nordic Museum is the only museum in the country dedicated to presenting the art, history, and culture of the entire Nordic region – a region that continues to lead the world in union density and quality of life.

Inspired by the strong labor traditions of the Nordics — represented in the Museum’s own permanent collection through artistic posters, songs, symbols, and historical artifacts — workers see unionization as a “constructive and necessary path forward,” as stated in NNMWU’s Vision Statement. Ultimately, workers hope to strengthen accountability, democratic governance, and transparency, ensuring the Museum not only honors its mission but thrives for generations to come.

NNMWU encourages the public to show their support for the union by writing a message of solidarity on their Community Bulletin at nnmworkersunited.org/solidarity.

For campaign updates, visit nnmworkersunited.org or follow @nnmworkers on Instagram.

About CWA

The Communications Workers of America (CWA) represents working people in telecommunications, customer service, media, airlines, health care, public service and education, manufacturing, tech, and other fields. Members of the CWA are part of one of America’s largest and most diverse unions and stand together to fight for justice in our communities and proudly support representation and a voice on the job every single day.