Museums are losing millions, job losses mounting with COVID-19 case surges, new study shows
already hurting museums.
According to an October AAM survey of 850 respondents from across the USA about the continued impact of coronavirus on museums, millions of dollars are being lost – with around a third of institutions facing permanent closure – and job loss is mounting as nearly 30% of American museums remain closed since the March lockdown.
“The financial state of U.S. museums is moving from bad to worse,” Laura Lott, AAM’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “Those that have reopened are operating on an average of 35% of their regular attendance – a reduction that is unsustainable long-term. Those that did safely serve their communities this summer do not have enough revenue to offset higher costs, especially during a potential winter lockdown. Without financial help, we could see thousands of museums shutter forever.”
Nearly a third of museum directors surveyed confirmed “significant risk” (12%) of closing permanently by next fall, or they “didn’t know” (17%) about their survival. More than half of museums have at most six months of operating reserves, while 82% have a year or less.
On average, each museum surveyed has lost $850,000 in revenue so far this year due to COVID. Respondents anticipated losing around 35% of their budgeted 2020 operating income and are predicting a loss of an additional 28% next year.
Reopened museums averaged $27,000 to get back in business, going as high as $750,000.
The employment numbers are also pretty dire. More than half (53%) of responding museums have had to furlough or lay off staff members, and approximately 30% of staff are currently out of work. Positions most impacted include frontline (68%), education (40%) and collections (26%) staff.
