The evening air crackles with an optimistic energy outside Star Garden, a small strip club in North Hollywood. Dancers outside encourage people to enter the coral pink building and spend their money on a hot August night. Striking actors and writers whoop and cheer as they line up at the door.
Passing cars honk in support. She speaks through a megaphone. The scene is a notable shift from last year, when dancers were urging customers to boycott the club. The peace turns out to be short-lived. With the formal recognition of their union, Star Garden dancers became the first at a U.
As newly unionized units at Star Garden and Magic Tavern negotiate their first contracts, their gains could set a precedent for dancers at other clubs looking to unionize. Star Garden dancers attended twice-a-month bargaining sessions with management in July and August to hash out terms of the Aug.
But dancers and management agreed on very little. Few dancers were scheduled to perform and management floated the idea of a cover charge that dancers disagreed with. But we are still hopeful. Star Garden did agree to renovate the club and addressed many environmental safety hazards dancers raised, reinstalling the pole right side up and steam cleaning carpeted areas, for example.
The club also agreed to equip security guards with metal detectors, a safety measure dancers requested. She and other dancers interviewed by The Times spoke on the condition they be identified by only their stage names.
