Portland dancers become second group of unionized strippers in the nation after months-long strike
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Dancers from a Portland, Oregon, club became the second group of strippers in the country to unionize following a unanimous vote.
"Watching the pile of yes votes get bigger and bigger was incredible," one dancer who goes by the stage name Poppy said in a press release.
Dancers at Portland's Magic Tavern have become the second unionized group of strippers in the U.S. following a unanimous vote. (iStock)
Many of the dancers at the Magic Tavern strip club launched a strike in April, citing "dangerous working conditions." Last week, the striking dancers voted 16-0 in favor of unionizing with Actors' Equity Association.
"Hearing all of the yes votes … made me feel so incredibly proud of my fellow union strippers, and so incredibly hopeful for the future of this industry," Nyx, another striking dancer, said in a press release from Actors' Equity Association.
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Magic Tavern's management did not respond to a request for comment but wrote in an Instagram story that a "small number of strippers" who were unsatisfied with policies at the club have been associating with a "desperate group of politically-active ‘sex workers’ [whose] goal seems a desire to corporatize" Portland's strip club industry.
The dancers said numerous safety concerns prompted the strike, ranging from an unstable pole, insufficient security cameras, unmarked and uneven stage flooring and more. Magic Tavern called the accusations "false" and "defamatory."
Portland has long boasted the title of America's strippiest metropolitan area. With 54 venues, it had the most strip clubs per capita by a wide margin in 2015, according to research by Pricenomics. The City of Roses' overall strip club count was only exceeded by Houston, which has a population almost four times that of Portland.
The dancers announced in June that they were unionizing with the Actors' Equity, which represents more than 51,000 actors and stage managers in the live theater industry.
Magic Tavern is the second unionized strip club in the country, following on the heels of Star Garden Topless Dive Bar in North Hollywood, California. Star Garden dancers — who are also represented by Actors' Equity — won their union bid in May, after a 15-month battle against management.
Dancers at North Hollywood's Star Garden Topless Dive Bar became the first unionized strippers in the United States earlier this year after a petition for "dignity and respect." (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
"This is proof that strippers joining a union is no fluke, and that workers who want a union can have a union," Actors’ Equity Association President Kate Shindle said in a written statement. "In this moment, it means that another group of dancers is on the path to a fairer, safer workplace."
Shindle added that the strippers are "eager to get to the bargaining table" and "back into their club."
Hannah Ray Lambert is an associate producer/writer with Fox News Digital Originals.
