SAN JOSE, Calif. - Tour guides at the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose walked off the job on Saturday, staging a one-day strike to protest actions taken by management of the historic site.
Tour guides strike
What they're saying:
The tour guides – who organized with Teamsters Local 856 in 2025 – walked off the job due to disputes with management concerning the usage of tour guides’ image and likeness for marketing promotion materials, the Teamsters Joint Council 7 said in a published statement.
According to the union, management at the Winchester Mystery House did not discuss the subject at the negotiation table and instead approached tour guides directly and urged them to sign waivers.
KTVU reached out to the Winchester Mystery House for comment, but did not hear back prior to publication.
"All we're asking for is a fair contract," said Emma Garcia Jones, a tour guide and San Jose native. "This house has been a cornerstone of San Jose's history for over 100 years now, long before this was Silicon Valley. My coworkers and I have the privilege of sharing that legacy as storytellers connecting with people from all over the world."
Dig deeper:
The union also said that its tour guides are attempting to negotiate with the Winchester Mystery House to place caps on the number of people in tour groups because the house "contains potential dangers due to improper ventilation, room sizes not built for a large capacity of visitors at one time, and 47 stairways that are navigated on any given tour."
"Workers have been the backbone of this mansion since its existence," said Veronica Diaz, Teamsters Local 856 Central Coast Division Director and lead negotiator. "When the tour guides organized last year, they knew this was going to be a battle with management, however they are united and will continue to lead the fight at the bargaining table.
The Source: Information for this story came from the union representing the tour guides at the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose.