In October, when the iconic Chippendales Dancers announced they were unionizing with Actors’ Equity Association, the union and workers alike were optimistic that their employer would voluntarily recognize the workers’ union and begin collaborating on improving their workplace. Instead, the employer has engaged in an extended campaign of illegal union-busting to retaliate against the dancers and deny them their legal right to organize. Equity has filed Unfair Labor Practices charges with the National Labor Relations Board and asks the public for support as these brave workers continue to fight for the union to which they are entitled.
Union-busting tactics have included a series of captive audience meetings to intimidate the workers away from supporting the union. The employer has also removed known union supporters from the work schedule and is now going as far as forcing all dancers to reaudition and reapply for their jobs, therefore effectively discharging all union supporters. The union is seeking an injunction calling for the reinstatement of all of these workers, among other remediations.
“Retaliating against unionizing workers this way isn’t just shameful, it’s illegal,” said Brooke Shields, president of Actors’ Equity Association. “The Chippendales dancers are incredibly talented professionals who have built the world-class reputation of the company. Now, it pains me to see these men demoralized, but they are not defeated. We call on the NLRB to hold the employer to account. In the meantime, we ask that everyone remind these performers that they’re not alone. Fans of their show and allies from the labor movement alike have their backs, and we need to let these brave performers know we’re all with them!”
The Chippendales Dancers first contacted Equity with concerns about their wages and working conditions, wanting them to be held to the same world-class standard they’re famous for delivering on stage. Equity, as the union is more commonly called, represents 51,000 professional actors and stage managers on Broadway and in live theatre across the United States.
The union has established a petition where members of the public can express their support for the dancers: https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/support-chippendales-dancers/
Chippendales is an all-male revue that has been in residence at The Rio in Las Vegas for more than two decades, where they perform in a $10 million custom theatre complex. In January, they move to the larger Mat Franco Theater at The Linq on the Las Vegas Strip. They also regularly tour both domestically and internationally. They are famous for their high production values and elaborately choregraphed shows, frequently described as “the Broadway of burlesque.”
However, the wages and benefits paid to their dancers lag significantly behind those of other Las Vegas entertainment offerings.
In the past two years, Equity’s organizing campaigns have resulted in union recognition for the Characters and Parades departments at Disneyland, strippers in LA and Portland, and the entertainers at Casa Bonita in Denver. The union recently ratified first contracts for the planetarium lecturers at Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles and for Drunk Shakespeare companies across the country.
