Casa Bonita Management Walked Away from the Bargaining Table
"Casa Boo-nita" will be dressed as an empty pink building for Halloween!
Lakewood, Colorado – The management of Casa Bonita walked away from the negotiating table, so the performers of Casa Bonita are walking onto the picket line. Picketing begins at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 30.
The entertainers who dive off cliffs, interact with guests and perform in the venue's shows are represented by Actors' Equity Association, the union that also represents more than 51,000 professional performers and stage managers working in live theatre across the country. Casa Bonita is a Mexican theme restaurant that has become a venerable Denver institution, which recently underwent a $40 million renovation bankrolled by owners Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame.
Today, Casa Bonita management failed to deliver responses in contract bargaining that would move the unionized workers towards a fair contract and a resolution to their outstanding Unfair Labor Practices charge.
"Casa management came to the table today offering an additional 11 cents over their last unfair wage offer, and very little for future layoff protections," said lead negotiator Andrea Hoeschen, assistant executive director and general counsel for Actors' Equity Association. "Despite that insult, the negotiating team responded with major compromises to try to get a deal. And then Casa Bonita walked away from the table without responding.
"We know they can pay the wages we're asking for because they already pay basically the same wages to the servers and bartenders. Their insistence on paying DOLLARS an hour less to the performers reflects a choice and a philosophy to devalue performers."
Equity and Casa Bonita management have been in negotiations since April 2025. The performers unanimously voted to unionize in November 2024, and unanimously reaffirmed their commitment to the union with their labor peace vote on August 14, 2025. In September, the union filed an Unfair Labor Practices charge against Casa Bonita when the restaurant illegally cut more than 1,000 hours from the workers without engaging in bargaining. Since then, Casa Bonita has added insult to injury by doubling down on an unfair wage proposal and refusing to respond to demands around performer safety. Last week, the workers delivered a petition to management urging them to accept the contract that is currently on the table.
Management at Casa Bonita faces a rapidly unionizing workforce. In the last year, IATSE has organized arcade workers and crew, and they are preparing for an upcoming election for 150+ servers, bussers, front-of-house and guest service workers that has been delayed by the federal government shutdown).
For additional information, please follow Casa Bonita United (@casabonitaunited) and Actors' Equity Association (@actorsequity) on Instagram.
ACTORS' EQUITY ASSOCIATION, founded in 1913, is the U.S. labor union that represents more than 51,000 professional actors and stage managers. Equity endeavors to advance the careers of its members by negotiating wages, improving working conditions and providing a wide range of benefits (health and pension included). Member: AFL-CIO, FIA. www.actorsequity.org #EquityWorks
October 29, 2025
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