A longtime Tijuana establishment with more than three decades in operation is now at the center of a labor dispute after closing abruptly earlier this year, leaving dozens of workers without severance pay.
Cantina Los Remedios was shut down without prior notice on January 2, 2026, according to employees and union representatives. More than 30 workers say they were left without legally mandated severance, with the estimated debt totaling approximately 3.4 million pesos (about $200,000 USD).
Carlos Contreras Martínez, secretary general of the Tijuana Gastronomic Workers Union, said neither the business owners nor the general manager have provided any explanation since the closure. He added that the general manager was last seen in early December 2025 and has not returned or responded since.
Union members have maintained a strike outside the closed restaurant and say it will continue until the workers are paid in full.
“A judge granted us the right to strike, and we intend to defend it,” Contreras said. “We will prevent anyone from coming in and removing even a single item.”
In addition to severance, workers report unpaid wages and delayed benefits. Contreras said some biweekly payments were overdue and that the 2025 year-end bonus was paid late, on December 23, and only in partial installments.
Erick Landagaray, an attorney for the union, said the strike was triggered by what he described as the abandonment of the business by its owners. According to Landagaray, the general manager resigned, leaving employees working without any legal authority or supervision.
Several affected workers said they are struggling financially amid the lack of communication from their employers. One employee, identified by the last name Escamilla, said workers are simply seeking what the law guarantees.
“We are demanding our rights and to be paid according to the law,” she said. “We are not asking for more than that. We want an agreement and the severance we earned during the time we worked at Cantina Los Remedios.”
What the Property Owners Say
The owners of the building housing Cantina de los Remedios dispute any direct responsibility for the labor claims. According to Juan Marcos Gutiérrez, legal representative for the property’s co-owners, the Virgen Santiesteban family, the dispute centers on which company employed the workers.
Gutiérrez said the property had been leased for decades to Cantinas El Cachanilla S.A. de C.V., the company that operated the restaurant. However, he noted that the union is currently pursuing labor claims against a different entity, La Pócima Secreta S.A. de C.V., which he says never had a lease agreement or legal relationship with the property owners.
The owners, he said, do not oppose workers seeking to enforce their labor rights, as long as those claims are directed at the appropriate employer. He also emphasized that the landlords have no interest in the restaurant’s remaining equipment or furnishings, describing most of the items as old and without commercial value.
“We are not disputing ownership of assets,” Gutiérrez said. “Our position is simply that Cantinas El Cachanilla S.A. de C.V., the former tenant, owed nearly five years of rent. After lengthy legal proceedings, we recovered the property as any landlord would when rent is not paid. We have no conflict with the union, but we also have no labor relationship with the workers.”
Gutiérrez added that the building is no longer intended to operate as a restaurant, and argued that maintaining a strike at the site serves no practical purpose now that commercial operations have ceased.
