In 2021, the architectural practice at large started to transform; people “no longer felt the need to stick to the traditional way of doing things when it came to matters related to the work environment”. Employees all over the industry have spoken up in recent years and have considered the solution of unionizing. In May of 2023, the employees of the renowned New York office Snøhetta announced a bid to unionize the studio, the second private-sector architecture studio in the United States to take this step. This week, it was declared that the workers voted against unionizing.
Initially reported to be 29 to 28, the final vote count was 35 to 29. The error was caused due to the overlooking of the company’s San Francisco branch. If the vote had passed, a total of 65 employees, made up of both full-time and regular part-time employees, would have been covered by the proposed union. Moreover, the union would have included all designers, architects, project leaders, and operations staff associated with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
When asked about the reasons behind the initiative, Snøhetta US workers claimed that “we are proud of our work at Snøhetta, and we are committed to our studio's success. Through unionization, we will gain a collective voice in the future of our workplace and our profession." Snøhetta's leadership supported the movement, claiming "We look forward to working with this group to better understand what joining a union might mean for the firm, our culture, our business, and our entire team. We have been told that their focus is on addressing industry-wide issues rather than challenges specifically within our studio.” However, The Architectural Workers United Association believes that the hire of anti-union law firm Stinson LLP helped defeat this initiative, running an anti-union campaign before the final vote.
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Can Architects Finally have a Seat at the Table? Labor Rights and Work Conditions in ArchitectureIn 2022, the first and only formal architecture union in the American private sector was formed by Bernheimer Architecture. The Bernheimer union was created to reframe discipline and create better labor right and working conditions. Snøhetta US is an extremely active architecture studio shaping the built environment in the country. Last year, they were selected among 20 firms to provide architectural design services for New York City’s future public building projects. Moreover, the studio recently designed a new 12,000-square-foot library in The Bronx, NYC. Finally, the studio oversaw Times Square 8-year long transformation, now officially completed. The scheme involved metamorphosing the space to become a pedestrian-exclusive world-class plaza.
