A majority of the performers at Casa Bonita today announced plans to unionize in an effort to negotiate for what Casa United spokesperson WM. Riley Holmes calls “the living wage Matt [Stone] and Trey [Parker] said they want workers to make,” he told City Cast Denver. Casa United is organizing with International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) and Actors Equity. Approximately 70 performers — both wet and dry — have signed cards to join.
Holmes told us Casa Bonita management has informed the performers that they do not plan to voluntarily recognize Casa United, which means the union push will go to a vote.
Back in 2023, a group of Casa Bonita restaurant workers called on management to revert to a tipping structure (which they have since done) and increase transparency. This new organizing effort does not include workers on the restaurant side of the business.
“Trey and Matt brought back Casa Bonita because they remembered magical moments,” Holmes said. “But every single person who works there goes into making that magic, and we are not compensated fairly.”
When we reached out to Casa Bonita management, they provided the following statement:
"Casa Bonita values all its employees and their safety and believes they are treated well and compensated fairly. We respect the rights of our employees and believe they should be entitled to vote on whether they are subject to a union."
We will be talking about this story on the City Cast Denver podcast as it develops.
UPDATE: After we published this story, Casa United shared a press release with more details about the announcement.
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