In September of last year, ArtNet reported that the world’s museums may have finally hit a critical juncture.
The ArtNet report pointed out that museums in the west are dealing with a perfect storm of reduced funding, less people working the floors, and any number of security threats.
As Remuseum founding director Stephen Reilly put it: “The general tone is concern and uncertainty. I’m not sure anyone feels like they have a clear road map to sustainability.”
Report author Brian Boucher added: “[This has resulted in] a sector-wide reckoning that touches not only budgets, but also programming, governance, and the very role of museums in civic life.”
In which case, we have to ask: is the future of museums and cultural tourism in general in peril at this point in time?
Who takes care of the curators?
Curation may seem like a glamorous occupation, but the true conditions are anything but luxurious.
Indeed, who would want to work for an institution affected by a severe lack of both public funding and private support, especially those that offer little pay in the face of budget cuts and regular staff reductions.
As a result, employees at a growing number of museums in the west are unionising, taking care of each other's needs in the absence of official support, especially in institutions that lack the funds to pay competitive wages.
One good example is in the United States: in August 2023, staff at New York’s Guggenheim Museum unionised after two years of negotiations.
Their initial union contract resulted in a minimum wage increase of nine percent over the two and a half years, as well as an increase in retirement contributions, four weeks of paid family leave, and funding for career training retroactive.
What is particularly good about the Guggenheim situation is that it helped guarantee minimum rates for both full- and part-time employees.
However, we cannot say the same for other museums throughout Europe and North America.
In March of this year, the United Kingdom’s National Audit Office (NAO) reported that over 50 percent of the country’s 15 government-funded museums and galleries plan to prioritise reductions in staff costs over the next three years.
Apparently, the museum sector in the UK still has not recovered from the financial losses of the pandemic, and it is their staff who are made to pay a steep price.
Learning from the Louvre Strike of 2025
On 16th June 2025, employees at The Louvre in Paris went on strike; demanding government action against the increasingly adverse effects of overtourism on local communities and their standard of living.
Experts agree that museum officials failed to see the writing on the wall: poor working conditions will ultimately result in discontent among employees, further compromising the museum experience for visitors.
In December of last year, after management failed to deliver on what was agreed upon, Louvre staff chose to stage rolling walk-outs.
This struck a blow against museum management which had already seen a significant drop in popularity thanks to the October 2025 heist wherein thieves made away with the French Crown Jewels.
The Louvre situation perfectly illustrates the consequences of poor compensation programmes and a general failure to meet the needs of employees.
Next measures
Admittedly, funding really is the core issue and it also involves the proper allocation of available funds to alleviate the current situation.
For example, allocating budgets for hidden technical works, security, and climate control prevents catastrophic leaks and burglaries.
These are significantly more important than just another aesthetic renovation as massive architectural overhauls can drain vital funds from more significant conservation needs.
At the same time, museums need to remember that drastic reductions in full-time security and front-desk positions, especially during peak visiting season, creates dangerous workloads and burnout.
Most importantly, management needs to heed union and employee warnings regarding building decay as this leads directly to operational shutdowns and protests.
