Confessions of a Disney Jack Sparrow...

Not sure if this was posted, but it is pretty interesting...

http://www.lamag.com/featuredarticle.aspx?id=7016&page=1

A friend sent me this a few days ago. Interesting read. It amazed me what some visitors (supposedly) did. Should point out that this Jack Sparrow worked at Disneyland.

Hah cool. =)

That was interesting...thanks for posting. I'm a little undecided if his firing was warrented but I figure Disney would have some strict rules and i guess if you don't follow them...that's the way the ship sinks

wow. thanks for posting that. it was really interesting and made you think a lot about what the characters have to go through. thanks!

That is interesting and kind of sad. I know Disney are very strict with their rules and with good reason - it can't be easy to keep the magic secret. Still, their points system does seem pretty flawed and I've heard of a few cases where people have been fired over little things.

I wish someone offered me a BJ on my break :goodnevil

No but seriously thats crazy this dude continued to break rules and seemed mad about it when he was punished. Its like any job in the USA you do good as or better than anyone else and you NEVER hear about it. However the minute you slip nobody stops bothering you about it.

I am glad you posted this. Disney thought it bad that he attended a premier in costume? What do they think of this kind of press? I hope CNN picks it up as I find some of the Disney Co's rules draconian and cruel.

thanks for that, i found it really interesting. Iv heard disney are very strict but you really have to feel sorry for the cm / workers with rules like that . I get the feeling disney feel there's always somebody to replace you kind of attitude.

I agree with most of you, but I also think that is one side of the story.

There are many jobs where you are not allowed to punch in late - even one minute, traffic or no traffic. My husband has worked for the same airline for over 20 years, but would lose his job if he did that enough times.

I definitely sympathize with this guy, and I found his entire story to be very interesting. But I am wondering what other CMs with similar jobs think about it.

It Is Simple

Its what I tell my kids who work for me, if you do not like the rules you know where the door is. Follow the rules or leave if you do not like it. People need to take responsibility for their action.:brick:

I saw the same article in the Disneyland forum last week.

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=311760

It is an interesting behind the scenes peek, but I don't buy the victim slant.

What do they make for being Jack? Can you make a living?

1DisneyDad said:

What do they make for being Jack? Can you make a living?

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I was wondering the same as I read the article.

Its what I tell my kids who work for me, if you do not like the rules you know where the door is. Follow the rules or leave if you do not like it. People need to take responsibility for their action.

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I hope your kids find foster care soon as any parent that would sacrifice their kids to the world before it is time "just because I have rules" is irresponsible. You are on this site because you love disney, yet you would send your kids out the door to who knows what end? I hope for your kids sake that you are full of bluster.

I agree with chrisdadrocks, if you dont like the rules then find somewhere else to work. Late is late, whether its 1 minute or half an hour, staff must be able to show up in time for their shifts. It looks like he was given specific rules and he didnt want to follow them. No sympathy from me.

teebin said:

I was wondering the same as I read the article.



I hope your kids find foster care soon as any parent that would sacrifice their kids to the world before it is time "just because I have rules" is irresponsible. You are on this site because you love disney, yet you would send your kids out the door to who knows what end? I hope for your kids sake that you are full of bluster.

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It sounds like they are refering to kids they manage at a job, not their own children at home...

teebin said:

I hope your kids find foster care soon as any parent that would sacrifice their kids to the world before it is time "just because I have rules" is irresponsible. You are on this site because you love disney, yet you would send your kids out the door to who knows what end? I hope for your kids sake that you are full of bluster.

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Whoa whoa, calm down. I'm pretty sure they meant kids who WORK for them. After all, the post says the "kids who work for me." Read the whole post, every word, before you fly off the handle. Your words are pretty harsh for someone who is "on this site because you love disney." Yikes.

Back on topic, I do the the article should be taken with a grain of salt. These are the accounts of one employee, who even admits he did not follow the rules. One of the reasons the article will drawn any attention is because the employer is Disney. While Disney's rules may seem harsh, they are there for a reason. If you can't follow them, there are hundreds waiting behind you to take the job who can. Just my 2 cents :wave:

1DisneyDad said:

What do they make for being Jack? Can you make a living?

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Not likely, unless you're single and have few expenses. I know, in FL, they make around $12.50 hr. I think CA cast make slightly more, but it's also more expensive to live there.

My "kids"

First thanks to those sticking up for me, and yes I meant the kids who work for me. Yes I do have a son and yes he goes into time out when he does something wrong that is called parenting. I am sorry but they way 16-25 years old kids act are very different from before they expect people to back over backwards for them and expect that they can do what they want and have no negative outcome for their actions. I see it in my work and I have been doing what I do for 10+ years. Even on this site we argue about if some of the CM's attitudes have changed for the worst. It is a problem and my son will know when he gets old enough to work that he has to follow rules no matter what.

It takes a little bit of effort to rack up 23 points in 7 months, so I don't get the complaint on that part. That would take calling in 23 times over the 7 months or being late 46 times or some kind of combo of both which would still be pretty excessive so I don't believe you can blame all that on traffic or illness. And points eventually fall off your record card so to speak so if you work there for years a point you recieved 3 years ago isn't going to count against you anymore. Disney actually has an extremely generous attendence policy, one that allows plenty of room for the occassional cold or traffic jam. I've never had another job where I could call in almost 3 times in one month without punishment.

As an entertainment CM I agree that some of the rules that apply to characters are silly. But rules are rules even when they're silly. And Disney gives you chances. There are very few occurances where someone was fired for a first offense. Characters break rules all the time, I see characters hop in strollers, get on the ground when they shouldn't, hold babies when they shouldn't, take pictures backstage, joke inappropriatly with the guests, etc and while most of it is done with the best of intentions, the character is aware that they shouldn't be doing it and they're willing to risk it. It's pretty hard to resist sometimes, in all honesty some of the best character interactions I've ever seen have involved characters bending the rules a bit. But you can't play innocent and act like it was all big bad Disney's fault when you knew you weren't supposed to pose with a child sitting on your knee or you knew you shouldn't have gotten drunk and announced to the whole bar you were a princess (I've seen it happen). If you can't deal with following silly rules, don't work for Disney.