The Chippendales Are Unionizing!

08.10.2024 19:50

Jezebel.com

This just in, folks: The Chippendale dancers are preparing to tell their bosses to pony on up. No, I'm not talking about the Ginuwine kind of pony. I mean, they're moving forward with a historic effort to earn a bit more than some wrinkled bills from a bachelorette party (or a group of Mormon moms-turned-TikTokers-turned-reality stars).

On Tuesday, The Hollywood Reporter reported that the famous dancers were seeking to unionize with Actors’ Equity Association, which has recently been expanding their representation of 51,000 professional actors and stage managers on Broadway. The entirely male revue, based out of the Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, said they're seeking higher wages and benefits.

“We love Chippendales and value being a part of this incredible institution,” the dancers coordinating the union effort told the publication. “But we also believe our situation here isn’t keeping up with industry standards. In order to continue providing the world-class entertainment that has always been the Chippendales' calling card, we need to have a world-class workplace—and that means fair pay, decent benefits, safety and accountability.”

“We believe a union contract will guarantee that everyone, dancers and management, has a shared understanding of the expectations and requirements necessary to continue providing the high production value, high-quality experience the Chippendales brand is known for--both onstage and off," the dancers added.

The Actors' Equity Association has asked the suits behind the Chippendales—a group of investors that reportedly include Kevin Denberg and Bryan Cheatham, a former dancer—for voluntary recognition. The union also filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for an election. If voluntary recognition is granted, the union will then withdraw the NLRB petition.

"Chippendales" was started by Somen “Steve” Banerjee and Nick De Noia in 1979, when the pair opened a bar in West Los Angeles and began hosting exotic dance nights for women. It became an overnight hit that expanded into multiple clubs in New York, Dallas, and Denver, and three touring troupes across the country and in Europe. In its heyday, Chippendales made millions, and the empire has successfully withstood multiple PR nightmares, from arson to a murder-for-hire plot, as most recently seen in Hulu's Welcome To Chippendales.

Yet, the dancers that have kept Chippendales in cuffs and bow ties are—according to Glassdoor—bringing in somewhere between $58,000 to $108,000. If you're a touring performer or one that performs nightly from Tuesday - Sunday (twice nightly on the weekends), that's not nearly enough.

“The entire Las Vegas Equity community is thrilled to welcome the Chippendales into our ranks,” Marci Skolnick, a representative for Equity told THR. “The recent victory by the Culinary Workers Union, who successfully unionized the hospitality workers up and down the entire strip, proves that Las Vegas is, and always has been, a union town. Actors’ Equity Association is here to help the Chippendales get union contracts, complete with union benefits, that will enable them to make a real living doing what they do best.”

If the Chippendales dancers are successful, they'll join the likes of the Star Garden strippers who, in 2023, were recognized as a union after joining the Actors’ Equity Association.

“This is not just a win for the dancers at this club, but the entire strip club industry,” Lilith, a Star Garden dancer, told Jezebel after the win. “Strippers who want to unionize their workplaces and have a voice in the way their clubs are run now have a clear path forward.”