Secret San Francisco society Bohemian Grove sued by former valets for unlawful labor practices — lawsuit reveals over 100 camps that operate under peculiar rules

San Francisco's secretive, all-male order called the Bohemian Club has been accused of unlawful labor practices by three valets who worked at the club for years, according to the San Francisco Gate.

The Bohemian Club was founded by a group of journalists in 1872 and routinely gathers in secret in the forest to allegedly take part in rituals that involve human effigies and the burning of a giant sacrificial owl, according to the outlet. Encyclopedia Britannica describes it as "an elite, invitation-only social club founded ... by a group of male artists, writers, actors, lawyers, and journalists, all of means and interested in arts and culture."

It was also recently reported that Justice Clarence Thomas had visited the camp, while controversial broadcaster Alex Jones once produced a documentary about the secret location after allegedly infiltrating it.

Three former valets, Anthony Gregg, Shawn Granger, and Wallid Saad, brought a lawsuit on June 6, 2023, that was investigated by SFGate. The legal complaint alleges unlawful practices by the Bohemian Club, which included "nonstop" work days, limited phone calls, and few bathroom or lunch breaks. A failure to meet minimum wage and overtime pay standards was also alleged.

The complaint revealed that the camp allegedly hosts three events per year: the Spring Jinx, the Spring Picnic, and the Summer Encampment.

The documents also reportedly showed that the club is broken up into over 100 camps, some of which were named in the complaint. The Camels Camps, the Last Chance Camps, and the Monastery Camp were all listed.

“Monastery Camp is one of the most prestigious and well-known camps at Bohemian Grove,” the complaint read. “Attendees include Bohemian Club members that are executives of Fortune 500 companies and prominent government officials.”

According to the complaint, one or more "captains" at each camp allegedly broke labor laws by directing valets to “falsify payroll records and to work off-the-clock.” Four valets were also allegedly forced to work “nonstop for approximately 18 hours providing a two-course lunch and dinner to 90 guests" during the Spring Jinx "Burgundy Lunch."

During the Summer Encampment, the lawsuit claimed that three employees worked “16+ hours per day for the duration of the 14-day camp," despite their timecards only showing eight hours per day. Overtime was allegedly paid "under-the-table" but did not reflect the actual hours worked.

“Employees were intimidated or coerced into waiving meal periods,” the documents also claimed. In addition, phone calls were only permitted before 9 a.m. and after 9 p.m. and could last no more than 30 minutes.

In 2016, the Bohemian Club faced litigation and eventually agreed to pay employees $7 million in a settlement that stemmed from a class-action lawsuit. The lawsuit claimed more than 600 employees were victims of wage theft from 2011 to 2014.

The plaintiffs' attorney declined to provide a statement to SFGate. The Bohemian Club, which has no published media contacts, was briefly reached by phone by the outlet. The person who answered the clubhouse phone reportedly said "I have no idea" when asked about the lawsuit and said there was no one else to speak to. Subsequent emails also went unanswered.

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