Entertainers and crewmembers on the Casa Bonita immersive restaurant, owned by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, are wanting to unionize with Actors’ Fairness and IATSE.
The restaurant, primarily based in Lakewood, Colorado, a suburb of Denver, lately reopened after being purchased out of chapter by Parker and Stone. The restaurant options cliff divers, actors, puppeteers, magicians and extra as a part of the eating expertise, supported by crewmembers.
These employees are wanting to unionize due to a spread of considerations, beginning with security at work, and together with inadequate coaching, in addition to truthful pay, better advantages, and higher communication between employees and administration. The employees requested for, however didn’t obtain, voluntary recognition, and at the moment are submitting with the Nationwide Labor Relations Board for an election.
The bargaining unit consists of round 60 performers, divided into moist and dry entertainers, and about 20 crewmembers, who’re searching for illustration with IATSE.
Casa Bonita first opened in 1974 and has been recognized for its measurement, with 52,000 sq. toes and seating for greater than 1,000 folks, in addition to its decor and sights, together with the pink exterior and a 30-foot waterfall with cliff divers and reside leisure inside. A 2003 South Park episode was set within the restaurant.
Parker and Stone bought the restaurant after it faltered through the pandemic, and renovated the constructing for $40 million, as was documented within the 2024 documentary ¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!. Following a tender launch, the restaurant totally reopened to the general public in September 2024. Staff had been rehired shortly after the renovation and had been in rehearsals main up to the tender launch on the finish of June.
Security considerations sparked the diver crew’s curiosity in unionizing, stated dive lead Bethel Lindsley, after incidents involving unsafe carbon monoxide ranges in a holding room, which she says have been finally addressed after her divers refused to work in these circumstances, in addition to a difficulty with a diver changing into hypothermic due to the development of the dive package and the truth that the divers have been moist for 4 to six hours at a time. Modifications have been additionally made round this.
On Sunday, Lindsley stated two divers collided underwater, inflicting one to have a critical concussion and to be taken to the hospital. All through this, Lindsley says she has written and introduced security insurance policies to administration, a few of which have been carried out after pushback. However she is pushing to see security insurance policies enshrined in a contract.
“My team just wants to work and know that they’re going to be safe and that the people have the proper training and awareness of policies and procedures in place in case something goes wrong. And luckily, my team is spectacular, and we’ve only had one accident now, but when the risk is this high, the response and training level needs to meet that,” Lindsley stated.
A consultant for Casa Bonita didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Lindsley stated the employees are additionally searching for a greater degree of communication with administration, as well as to better advantages and higher pay. She famous that the divers make above minimal wage for the world, however that it’s not a “living wage,” and the divers can not settle for ideas or take part within the tipping pool, in contrast to servers.
“For all of us, it’s a special place, as dear to us individually as it is to the community who lines up to visit each day. We appreciate how much you’ve given of yourselves to make Casa Bonita a world-class destination for a new generation. As you said several times in the ¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor! documentary, it’s like Broadway — and that’s why we believe the unions that have organized Broadway’s workers onstage and off can help ensure we’re able to continue delivering world-class entertainment here for years to come,” the leisure employees stated in a letter despatched to Parker and Stone.
“We believe a strong union contract could help us solve some of the challenges we’ve encountered around safety, scheduling, compensation, and communication. Having a document that clearly sets shared expectations — and the mechanisms to enforce those expectations — will strengthen Casa Bonita and enable us to provide the best possible experience for our guests,” the letter continues.