Cast Member Standards

[AVeryDifferentDisneyDad]

This is not unique to WDW the work ethic is not being taught by parents in a lot of families and this is reflected in the current work force. Higher pay won't change it

Oh, boy... here comes the "get off my lawn!" jokes...

But, sadly, I agree... to an extent. Not ready to point the finger at parents, per se, but the whole concept of "work ethic" grows more bleak by the minute.

I'm throwing a slow, fastball right down the middle for the "everyone gets a trophy" crowd.

 

[Alice a]

This is not unique to WDW the work ethic is not being taught by parents in a lot of families and this is reflected in the current work force. Higher pay won't change it

I kind of get it, though.

As an older, middle-aged millennial, Zoomers and younger millennials have watched previous generations work hard only to be laid off due to no fault of their own (corporate mismanagement, mergers, downsizing older, more expensive workers, numerous recessions) all while benefits are cut and taxes for middle and lower income workers increase as wealthier income brackets get bigger and bigger breaks.

There has been no loyalty shown to workers from their employers going on 2.5 generations now, so why on earth should work ethic improve?

If anything, they’re smarter than us for recognizing the system is made to drain them and throw them away and refusing to play ball.

 

[Ayla]

I kind of get it, though.

As an older, middle-aged millennial, Zoomers and younger millennials have watched previous generations work hard only to be laid off due to no fault of their own (corporate mismanagement, mergers, downsizing older, more expensive workers, numerous recessions) all while benefits are cut and taxes for middle and lower income workers increase as wealthier income brackets get bigger and bigger breaks.

There has been no loyalty shown to workers from their employers going on 2.5 generations now, so why on earth should work ethic improve?

If anything, they’re smarter than us for recognizing the system is made to drain them and throw them away and refusing to play ball.

Eh. I'm not going to cheer anyone being a crappy employee, regardless of age.

 

[Chef Mickey]

I think there’s two issues here.

1. People pay a lot of money to go to Disney. They should expect high quality service whether it be a restaurants, relations, or stores.

BUT

2. Disney does not pay their workers enough. As our ticket prices have increased, their wages have not. Thus, employees probably feel less enthusiastic to be working if they aren’t getting their fair share for making the magic happen.

I do agree, I have had some negative experiences with cast members more recently than previous trips. I’m not excusing their behavior at all, obviously it’s upsetting. But, there are still countless workers who show up everyday and make every guests’ day as wonderful as they can be. Knowing the treatment of these workers, I feel even more grateful for the positive energy these select cast members bring.

Always fill out cast compliments!

Disney’s pay is not the issue. They are aligned with market rates for labor.

 

[Disone]

Disney’s pay is not the issue. They are aligned with market rates for labor.

'Higher even. Uni and sea world Pay less in most cases for like roles. Same for significantly most of like services in the central Florida area in food and beverage, hospitality, and entertainment industries.

They are the largest employer in the area and in general pay more then most. It's a token more, for example uni starts at $17 while WDW starts at $18 but still... When the largest employee pays more the.most I think your in a good spot.

Before all of the examples come in of similar jobs that pay higher than Disney, please note I did say most. Not all. I am not stating they are the highest, just higher then most.

 

[Chef Mickey]

'Higher even. Uni and sea world Pay less in most cases for like roles. Same for significantly most of like services in the central Florida area in food and beverage, hospitality, and entertainment industries.

They are the largest employer in the area and in general pay more then most. It's a token more, for example uni starts at $17 while WDW starts at $18 but still... When the largest employee pays more the.most I think your in a good spot.

Before all of the examples come in of similar jobs that pay higher than Disney, please note I did say most. Not all. I am not stating they are the highest, just higher then most.

Universal is really the benchmark anyway. We can all talk about other jobs, but Disney has to consider many factors and the labor market will decide if it's a fair wage.

Remember, labor markets work just like prices for anything. People think corporations "set" prices, but the market really does. Any corporation can charge whatever they like, but consumers will ultimately decide if they want to pay it or not. Then it's adjusted accordingly.

 

[mkt]

'Higher even. Uni and sea world Pay less in most cases for like roles. Same for significantly most of like services in the central Florida area in food and beverage, hospitality, and entertainment industries.

For several years now, Uni has generally matched Disney's wages. They've had no choice since they need to staff up that little project they're building next to Lockheed Martin.

 

[Disone]

For several years now, Uni has generally matched Disney's wages. They've had no choice since they need to staff up that little project they're building next to Lockheed Martin.

Disney is higher. Universal starts at 17 and Disney starts at 18.

Disney was headstrong with the Union for a $17 an hour position until Feb of 2023.... Universal announced that they were going to start paying $17 an hour. Short time later as typically Disney will do, they'll look at Universal pay And then match it plus $1. Which is exactly what they did here.
I have yet to see anything in print or from a firsthand account of universal offering $18 an hour to start.

 

[mkt]

Disney is higher. Universal starts at 17 and Disney starts at 18.

Disney was headstrong with the Union for a $17 an hour position until Feb of 2023.... Universal announced that they were going to start paying $17 an hour. Short time later as typically Disney will do, they'll look at Universal pay And then match it plus $1. Which is exactly what they did here.
I have yet to see anything in print or from a firsthand account of universal offering $18 an hour to start.

Thanks for that.

I don’t track the details as closely as some, but working in the industry at my current level (without naming my employer - it might be Disney, Universal, United Parks and Resorts, Six Flags, Herschend, Gatorland, all of them, some of them, none of them, or perhaps I’m just an internet troll), and with the contacts I’ve made across these tragical kingdoms, it’s widely understood here in Orlando that between the big boys, one tends to follow the other.

Given that history - and the reasonable inference that staffing up a new park is a truly *epic* task (pun emphatically not intended) - I wouldn’t be surprised if UO announces a pay increase in the coming months to lure talent for Epic and to backfill roles left vacant by internal transfers.

Now for some of my unsolicited opinions, sprinkled with a dash of experience *and/or* just a pinch of trolling:
Whilst Disney’s union contracts give CMs a more predictable day-to-day arrangement, UO’s structure provides them with the flexibility to discreetly offer higher starting wages when necessary. Conversely, if WDW were to raise wages outside of a formal contract renegotiation, the STCU would almost certainly push back, demanding even more or bundling additional benefits into the deal.

And another thing worth noting: UO’s tuition reimbursement programme now bests Disney’s. Loads of CMs who were at Disney to bag themselves a free degree have already jumped ship.

And whilst we’re on the subject, a fair few hourly CMs have traded in their ears for the Universal globe, taking on professional or leadership roles. Or at least that’s what I’ve been seeing on LinkedIn. Or maybe I don’t have LinkedIn, and all of this came to me during a mescaline-fuelled bender whilst chatting with Elon over on X.

 

[Disone]

Thanks for that.

I don’t track the details as closely as some, but working in the industry at my current level (without naming my employer - it might be Disney, Universal, United Parks and Resorts, Six Flags, Herschend, Gatorland, all of them, some of them, none of them, or perhaps I’m just an internet troll), and with the contacts I’ve made across these tragical kingdoms, it’s widely understood here in Orlando that between the big boys, one tends to follow the other.

Given that history - and the reasonable inference that staffing up a new park is a truly *epic* task (pun emphatically not intended) - I wouldn’t be surprised if UO announces a pay increase in the coming months to lure talent for Epic and to backfill roles left vacant by internal transfers.

Now for some of my unsolicited opinions, sprinkled with a dash of experience *and/or* just a pinch of trolling:
Whilst Disney’s union contracts give CMs a more predictable day-to-day arrangement, UO’s structure provides them with the flexibility to discreetly offer higher starting wages when necessary. Conversely, if WDW were to raise wages outside of a formal contract renegotiation, the STCU would almost certainly push back, demanding even more or bundling additional benefits into the deal.

And another thing worth noting: UO’s tuition reimbursement programme now bests Disney’s. Loads of CMs who were at Disney to bag themselves a free degree have already jumped ship.

And whilst we’re on the subject, a fair few hourly CMs have traded in their ears for the Universal globe, taking on professional or leadership roles. Or at least that’s what I’ve been seeing on LinkedIn. Or maybe I don’t have LinkedIn, and all of this came to me during a mescaline-fuelled bender whilst chatting with Elon over on X.

They have already done a large bulk of their hiring for Epic, and I am genuinely surprised they have not up the starting pay to match, or exceed Disney's. It would be interesting to see what Disney would do if they exceeded it.

 

[donaldtoo]

Has anybody here seen any numbers as to how many jobs Epic is expected to create…?

 

[mkt]

They have already done a large bulk of their hiring for Epic, and I am genuinely surprised they have not up the starting pay to match, or exceed Disney's. It would be interesting to see what Disney would do if they exceeded it.

Disney would be in a frenzy, firing off press releases and calling in their labour counsellors to handle the union council and get this resolved as quickly as possible.

As for Epic Hiring, they’re still bringing in people by the cartload and putting out job adverts for mass hiring.

It’s likely they’ve staffed up enough for pre-opening testing, but they’re probably still far from fully operational. Hiring a full crew months ahead of time and paying them to sit idle wouldn’t exactly be the sharpest business decision, would it?

Has anybody here seen any numbers as to how many jobs Epic is expected to create…?

14,000 new jobs. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/202...nstruction-again-promising-thousands-of-jobs/

 

[cbarry26]

I have to say, now that my sons are actual Cast Members, we are visiting much more frequently - let's say 4-5 times a year instead of the old once per year. Over the last two years I have made sure to take notice of the cast and what kind of job they are doing and I have not seen the problems that many are mentioning here. Now that we have cast in the family, I have also made it a point to thank and compliment any cast member that is doing their difficult job well and being extra helpful or nice to me and there have been some stellar examples of great cast members both young and old. The response, more often than not, has been a rather shocked look and a similar comment and I'm paraphrasing, "Thank you...that means a lot." They genuinely seem thrilled to be receiving praise from a guest. As if...it doesn't happen that often. Could it be that the current state of misbehavior from the guests are souring the cast member's experiences? I make it a point NOT to talk to my sons about this kind of stuff because I want to remain as non-partisan as I can when I visit. So I have not heard them pass comments on guest behavior. This is my own theory. But I think it's worth mentioning that as a more frequent guest myself, I have seen the guest behavior degenerate significantly over the years and I wonder if that has an impact on the cast members that some of you are seeing.

 

[bryanfze55]

I just got back from my first WDW trip in over 5 years (have been to Disneyland during that time).

I gotta say, park CMs can definitely be hit or miss on both coasts… but the CMs are WDW resorts and full service dining were amazing. Like as good as ever, if not better. Maybe we just got lucky. Unscientifically, I’d maybe attribute it to a less stressful setting?

I saw some great park CMs too, but I think the reason they stood out is because it is more rare nowadays. It seems there was a lot of temporary workers this time. Most were just kind of there. Makes me appreciate the good ones though!

 

[Ayla]

I have to say, now that my sons are actual Cast Members, we are visiting much more frequently - let's say 4-5 times a year instead of the old once per year. Over the last two years I have made sure to take notice of the cast and what kind of job they are doing and I have not seen the problems that many are mentioning here. Now that we have cast in the family, I have also made it a point to thank and compliment any cast member that is doing their difficult job well and being extra helpful or nice to me and there have been some stellar examples of great cast members both young and old. The response, more often than not, has been a rather shocked look and a similar comment and I'm paraphrasing, "Thank you...that means a lot." They genuinely seem thrilled to be receiving praise from a guest. As if...it doesn't happen that often. Could it be that the current state of misbehavior from the guests are souring the cast member's experiences? I make it a point NOT to talk to my sons about this kind of stuff because I want to remain as non-partisan as I can when I visit. So I have not heard them pass comments on guest behavior. This is my own theory. But I think it's worth mentioning that as a more frequent guest myself, I have seen the guest behavior degenerate significantly over the years and I wonder if that has an impact on the cast members that some of you are seeing.

Declining guest behavior is probably 95% of the problem, no question.

 

[AVeryDifferentDisneyDad]

I COMPLETELY think that guest behavior can, and has had, a dramatic impact on the current group of CMs. My experiences with rude or indifferent CMs in my 10+ visits to DW can be counted on two hands with several fingers unused.

Howeva!! I can't even BEGIN to count my experiences with spoiled, rude, arrogant, indifferent jerks who are guests in the park! And the children are worse!

Another reason I haven't seriously explored working there. I would be fired for throat chopping someone.

 

["El Gran Magnifico"]

You also need to factor in that Disney is massive. The area too has rapidly grown.

It’s a lot different than the 80s and 90s when they were able to have their pick of a workforce to cover 2 parks and 5 hotels. And doing that with very little competition.

I’d think it impossible at this point to staff all positions with highly qualified or even barely qualified people.

So there are going to be a lot more weak links. But there are still some strong ones too.

As for crowd behavior - yeah, people are jerks nowadays.

 

[mkt]

I COMPLETELY think that guest behavior can, and has had, a dramatic impact on the current group of CMs. My experiences with rude or indifferent CMs in my 10+ visits to DW can be counted on two hands with several fingers unused.

Howeva!! I can't even BEGIN to count my experiences with spoiled, rude, arrogant, indifferent jerks who are guests in the park! And the children are worse!

I've seen how badly some guests behave. CMs are absolute saints for putting up with it.

Another reason I haven't seriously explored working there. I would be fired for throat chopping someone.

Passive aggression helps.

 

[Phonedave]

I kind of get it, though.

As an older, middle-aged millennial, Zoomers and younger millennials have watched previous generations work hard only to be laid off due to no fault of their own (corporate mismanagement, mergers, downsizing older, more expensive workers, numerous recessions) all while benefits are cut and taxes for middle and lower income workers increase as wealthier income brackets get bigger and bigger breaks.

There has been no loyalty shown to workers from their employers going on 2.5 generations now, so why on earth should work ethic improve?

If anything, they’re smarter than us for recognizing the system is made to drain them and throw them away and refusing to play ball.

It is a pendulum, that you would hope settles at a happy medium, but so far has not.

Employee abuse swings to employer abuse. Giving your all only to be abused and laid off swings to quiet quitting.

A middle ground where it is fair for everybody can be hard to maintain, since it is easily upset.

 

[flynnibus]

Declining guest behavior is probably 95% of the problem, no question.

There is more than one leg there tho.. It's how the company treats its employees when facing hardship.

When an employee feels like the company is not supporting them when they face adversity, most will go with the negative and service declines.

The employees who work in an environment who won't tolerate the jerks and support their employees who do the right thing will be happier and more resilient to adversity than in an environment where the employers treats them as fall guys or puts them in impossible positions.