Disgruntled Disney Workers Give Leaflets At OIA

[JackSkellington]

I think that there are things we do and dont know about on the table. I do agree that before you are hired the company must tell you how much they plan to pay you. So money difficulty should not be a problem to be addressed. However in the society we live things are more expensive and more dangerous. I dont think health benefits should be cut, not now especially. And I do appreciate the CM's from LA, to FL most of them do a great if not spectacular job at these parks. GO CM's.

 

[STGRhost]

How many of you in the "Don't like it? Quit." camp will complain, on your next trip to WDW, that the quality of CMs is down? If all the people who work for Disney who aren't happy with the money just quit, who do you think will be left? Certainly not the quality, smiley-faced CMs Disney is known for. The Company continues to "show" a profit, while treating it's employees like crap. It used to be an honor to work there, and that showed not only in the way Disney treated it's employees, but in the way those employees treated the guests.

Some of you like to remind us it's "Just business". If that were true, and had always been the case, would people be so passionate about any of this?

 

[Jekyll]

I can't belive some of the people on here. Let me ask you this, you've worked at a company for 5 years. You love your job, you like seeing all the smileing faces everyday. You've even got a pension plan. Now, you tell me, are you willing to just walk away from that job because your not happy with your pay? How many of you have ever asked for a raise in your lifetime at your jobs? Do you think it's any differnt at Disney. All we are asking for is a decent raise and protection from being dropped down to 32 hours per week.

There is no strike, no pickiting, no one is calling in on the job, no one is handing out stuff to tourists in the parks.

Honestly though. I hope everyone one of you who has an issue with this, would walk up to your boss and say, "Give me a 4% Raise" or else I quit, and then do it. Really, quit your job.. tell me you did it, tell me you had no problem quiting right now, today because you could not get a raise. You guys should support the union's work at Disney. You should support the CM's who are asking nothing more than a cost of living increase.

Some of us support you 100% you can love what you do that doesn't mean you should do it for free. The college program get enough cheap help.

 

[speck76]

Some of you are a little too passionate about this, especially for not working in Orlando, and maybe not having any experience in the Orlando job market as either an employee or as a manager.

I do not work for Disney, but I do work for a major hotel company in Orlando that has a reputation for being good to its associates.

When I moved to Orlando in 1997, I was straight out of college and was paid the low hourly wage of $6.75 per hour, which at that time was about $.80 more per hour than WDW paid. I had trouble making ends meet, the move from the midwest was expensive, I still had bills from college, and for the most part, I did not have a lot of discretionary income (play money). My contribution to my health insurance (HMO, Dental, Vision, Life, AD&D, STD/LTD) was about $6 per week.

If I was still in that job today, I would probably make around $11.50 per hour based on yearly merit increases. Now, I don't know about all of you, but I could not imagine having to survive on that wage. (Especially since my weekly contribution to my insurance is now about $35)

Luckily, I did not stay in that job, I worked hard, and was loyal to the company, and I was promoted many times, and now make a very nice wage.

While I was an operations manager, we were having a hard time hiring people, as most of the people we had apply at the resort were, well, not great quality. We raised the starting pay by $2 per hour, which made us the market leader for that type of position, but we did not get better candidates, just more of them, and, for the most part, loyalty to the company amongst these employees was not nearly as high, as they were just working for us for the paycheck, not for the company. It really does not pay in this industry to raise wages.

I don't think WDW has ever seen the value in having a loyal workforce, but on the same token, I think many people that work at WDW may be loyal for the wrong reasons (they love Mickey, so they want to work for Disney).

The point I was trying to make at the top is that one will never make a ton of money in entry-level service industry positions. If people really need to make ends meet, they need to work hard and get promoted.......the 5% per year you want (or whatever the number is) is never going to get you ahead, and never going to make you wealthy (in money). If people really want to work for WDW, they need to accept the fact that they will have a tough time making ends meet, or they need to take responsibility to make their situation better.

 

[GoofMaul]

I wasn't trying to be insensitive by saying that...

I wasn't talking about you TheDisneyGirl02. I was just using a quote from your statement that basically attests to the fact that some people here are being insensitive. Sorry for the confusion. I agree with you 100%. :wave:

 

[wannab@dis]

I'm not going to get into the fight about whether a union is good or not. I have my opinion and it doesn't affect the outcome of this situation. However, a couple of people have made the statement that another $0.50 per hour is not going to cause a loss. Well, if Disney gives this union's members a raise, then it will have to give raises to the other unions and also their non-union employees. What is good for the goose is good for the gander, so to speak.

Let's do a little math. Disney has about 50,000 employees. Let's give them all a $0.50 raise per hour. Let's make a simple assumption -- the average worker has 35 hours per week.

50,000 Employees * 35 hours per week * 52 weeks per year

That equals 91,000,000 man hours per year. Give them $0.50 per hour.

That comes out to $45.5 MILLION. That's not a small lump of money. Now, I assume most people understand how insurance and benefits work, but Disney has to pay taxes on their employees (fica, medicare, etc). They also pay part of the employee's insurance and retirement funds. Our company has a rule of thumb. There is an additional 30% in costs for employees. So, that $45.5M raise will cost Disney an additional $13.7M in benefits and taxes.

So, the total costs for this "insignificant" raise would be close to $60,000,000.

I don't know the total number of visitors for the parks per year, but it appears it would cost more than a $1 per ticket increase to cover that expense.

All that said, I agree that employees should be paid well for the job they do, but I also have to look at the corporate impact of decisions. I won't get into the fact that I believe the execs at Disney make too much, but I just wanted to show you the math of how a small raise can affect a business of this size.

 

[speck76]

So, the total costs for this "insignificant" raise would be close to $60,000,000.

I don't know the total number of visitors for the parks per year, but it appears it would cost more than a $1 per ticket increase to cover that expense.

It would be close to $2 per ticket.

 

[wannab@dis]

It would be close to $2 per ticket.

Thanks! Now, let's take into account that most people get PH or UPH as their ticket of choice. A 5 day hopper would need to increase $10.

I remember a few months ago when they raised the prices of the hoppers, many here were 'hopping' mad!!

 

[GoofMaul]

If people really want to work for WDW, they need to accept the fact that they will have a tough time making ends meet, or they need to take responsibility to make their situation better.

So, in essence, what you are saying is that Disney doesn't pay their employees enough to live on? Well that makes me feel really good about the Mouse.

I think there are many CMs that love their job at Disney and just want to be able to continue that job without having to worry about paying their rent, putting food on their table, and getting quality health care. I don't think that is too much to ask for. They are not asking to "make a lot of money".

I disagree that there has to be a choice between being financially sound or working for Disney.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Yeah, alienating the tourists is not a good tactic. Hopefuly they wont do that on Disney Property, because thats a major no-no.

If I landed at the airport and was confronted with this type of action, I think I would actually have a fit. You meen to tell me that union members are actually attempting to affect a persons vacation, something that some people may save up years to do, to have an affect at the negotiating table. They are trying to affect the people who bring in the money to pay those salaries, reguardless of how little they may be.

As far as I am concerned business is business. If your life circumstances change and your current employment situation does not meet those circumstances, its not your employers fault, its your issue, you resolve it by bettering yourself or your situation. Our liberal government has done a really good job of brainwashing allot of people into thinking that entrance level hourly positions should be able to support a family comfortably. Sorry, thats just not reality.

 

[speck76]

So, in essence, what you are saying is that Disney doesn't pay their employees enough to live on? Well that makes me feel really good about the Mouse.

I think there are many CMs that love their job at Disney and just want to be able to continue that job without having to worry about paying their rent, putting food on their table, and getting quality health care. I don't think that is too much to ask for. They are not asking to "make a lot of money".

I disagree that there has to be a choice between being financially sound or working for Disney.

Ok....Let's pretend it is not Disney (because many seem to have the thought that because it is Disney, they should be more compassionate). Let's say it is Wal-Mart or McDonalds. Should Wal-Mart and McDonalds have to pay their workers enough to live on, because they don't currently, and many of the CM's have comparable jobs.

If you are saying Disney SHOULD pay everyone more due to the simple fact that they are "Disney", then should they be held to the same standards as other Fortune 500 companies that are not "Disney", how would the investors feel about the extra overhead, (remember, the majority of investors are pension funds - many are teachers' pension funds, so if the stock does not do as well, many people get hurt)

Another thing to consider is that as people's income grows, so do there expenses. Making ends meet and earning enough to live on means different things to different people.

 

[Jekyll]

So, in essence, what you are saying is that Disney doesn't pay their employees enough to live on? Well that makes me feel really good about the Mouse.

I think there are many CMs that love their job at Disney and just want to be able to continue that job without having to worry about paying their rent, putting food on their table, and getting quality health care. I don't think that is too much to ask for. They are not asking to "make a lot of money".

I disagree that there has to be a choice between being financially sound or working for Disney.

As I said before. Quailty work deserves reward. They draw good people to work there because people believe in Walt Disney's ideals. To keep that happeness and that smile an their drive to do what ever it is to make a guests day the CM's should get their raise. Maybe the CEO's should get a pay cut. Eisner make way to much money as is. He wouldn't have to work another day in his life.

 

[speck76]

Another part of the problem is that having a union involved limits WDW's ability to reward good employees. Unions tend to think that everybody deserves equal pay (based on seniority), but as we all know, there are good cast members and bad cast members.

In a perfect world (union-free) WDW would have a system that rewarded the best CMs, those who were loyal to WDW, and consistantly upheld the company's goals and visions. By doing this, not only would the good CMs be rewarded, but the bad CMs would not be rewarded (and hopefully they would find another job).

With a union involved, systems like this are not possible. If the union gets a raise, I believe everyone gets a raise (no matter their job performance)....and let's face it, not everyone deserves a raise.

 

[Jekyll]

Another part of the problem is that having a union involved limits WDW's ability to reward good employees. Unions tend to think that everybody deserves equal pay (based on seniority), but as we all know, there are good cast members and bad cast members.

In a perfect world (union-free) WDW would have a system that rewarded the best CMs, those who were loyal to WDW, and consistantly upheld the company's goals and visions. By doing this, not only would the good CMs be rewarded, but the bad CMs would not be rewarded (and hopefully they would find another job).

With a union involved, systems like this are not possible. If the union gets a raise, I believe everyone gets a raise (no matter their job performance)....and let's face it, not everyone deserves a raise.

I am in no means pro union. I am just saying there are good CM's who have been there for a while and deserve a little compensation for helping to make special memories for all of us.

 

[speck76]

I am in no means pro union. I am just saying there are good CM's who have been there for a while and deserve a little compensation for helping to make special memories for all of us.

I agree that certain CM's who are "the best of the best" deserve something for their performance and dedication.....I am in the parks enough to know that not EVERY CM deserves a raise. Bad CMs may be few and far between, but they do exist, and in my eyes, they don't deserve to be rewarded "just because"

 

[Jekyll]

I agree that certain CM's who are "the best of the best" deserve something for their performance and dedication.....I am in the parks enough to know that not EVERY CM deserves a raise. Bad CMs may be few and far between, but they do exist, and in my eyes, they don't deserve to be rewarded "just because"

I agree 100%. But, in the same vain I would rather reward a few bad ones as long as all the good ones are rewarded.

 

[Dwarful]

If there are bad cm's can't Disney fire them? I agree that "making ends meet" means different things to different people. I had an excellent job with the Federal Government, great pay, excellent benefits, but gave it all up to stay home and raise my children. Yet my husband and I did not have to give up our home, our children's education or our trips to Disney World. I don't have a cell phone, we don't trade our vehicles in every 3 years and I shop wisely and use coupons & discount codes for Pop or All Star resorts. so we have made adjustmants to compensate for that $50,000 yrly loss.
That being said. I would love it if every person who really loathes unions would willingly give up paid vacations, 5 day work weeks, 40 hour work weeks, overtime possiblity and all of the other things that so many people feel they "get" automatically. Many jobs don't pay great, or they pay well w/ no benefits.

I am not anti CM's I would think that full time CM's should be paid according to their jobs...waitstaff has the benefits of tipping if they provide good service. Where ride operators do not.

 

[TURKEY]

Another thing to consider is that as people's income grows, so do there expenses. Making ends meet and earning enough to live on means different things to different people.

Sort of like the FL minimum wage amendment that's on the ballott. I don't want to really get into politics, but raising the minimum wage equals an increase in expenses as the cost of living goes up.

 

[TURKEY]

Another part of the problem is that having a union involved limits WDW's ability to reward good employees. Unions tend to think that everybody deserves equal pay (based on seniority), but as we all know, there are good cast members and bad cast members.

In a perfect world (union-free) WDW would have a system that rewarded the best CMs, those who were loyal to WDW, and consistantly upheld the company's goals and visions. By doing this, not only would the good CMs be rewarded, but the bad CMs would not be rewarded (and hopefully they would find another job).

With a union involved, systems like this are not possible. If the union gets a raise, I believe everyone gets a raise (no matter their job performance)....and let's face it, not everyone deserves a raise.

That's why I'm against the union. Go ahead and flame me (those that have in the past).

You can't get rid of the bad CM's easily and the good CM's are not rewarded with anything.

 

[TURKEY]

I agree 100%. But, in the same vain I would rather reward a few bad ones as long as all the good ones are rewarded.

But then you aren't rewarding the good CM's. They don't get anything extra from what the bad CM's get.