Grouchy CMs low quality standards and other things from our trip...

[fosse76]

No one is "forced" to work, we live in a free Country. IF a person did not want a job at a place open on Holidays they are "free" to go find a job elsewhere.

That's really a lame response. Firstly, dealing with people is probably one of the most stressful jobs out there (and as a former chemist, I would would rather have the frustrations of experiments and/or equipment not working than those of rude and unruly people). Even the most friendly and courteous among us can be unhinged by dealing with the crowds of Disney. I think it's more a testament to those crowds than it is to the CMs. And anyone who claims that it's their job to be friendly and courteous while at work without showing any inner turmoil has either (a) never worked in customer service of any kind or (b) never worked in a theme park. Even Mother Theresa would have gone postal had she had a job at Disney (or any theme/amusement park). It is just not always possible to hide emotions or exhaustion. It never ceases to amaze me how the public-at-large has no respect for anyone who works in customer service. It is their job to ensure you have a good time; it's not their job to give you whatever you want. And people ARE abusive when they don't get their way.

And also, I think many people here seem to interchange "rude" with "indifference" as if they are the same thing. Just because a CM isn't smiling the entire time doesn't make him/her "rude."

 

[draybook]

That's really a lame response. Firstly, dealing with people is probably one of the most stressful jobs out there (and as a former chemist, I would would rather have the frustrations of experiments and/or equipment not working than those of rude and unruly people). Even the most friendly and courteous among us can be unhinged by dealing with the crowds of Disney. I think it's more a testament to those crowds than it is to the CMs. And anyone who claims that it's their job to be friendly and courteous while at work without showing any inner turmoil has either (a) never worked in customer service of any kind or (b) never worked in a theme park. Even Mother Theresa would have gone postal had she had a job at Disney (or any theme/amusement park). It is just not always possible to hide emotions or exhaustion. It never ceases to amaze me how the public-at-large has no respect for anyone who works in customer service. It is their job to ensure you have a good time; it's not their job to give you whatever you want. And people ARE abusive when they don't get their way.

And also, I think many people here seem to interchange "rude" with "indifference" as if they are the same thing. Just because a CM isn't smiling the entire time doesn't make him/her "rude."

I worked for about 3 years in two casinos, between valet parking and slot technician, so I worked directly with people. I never once was rude to any person I dealt with nor did I ever let my personal problems interfere with work. Hell, at one time in valet I had a tooth intection that spread to my saliva gland and it caused the left side of my side to swell severely to the point that I was taking about 8 Equate ibuprofens every 4-5 hours but I was out there getting people's cars with a smile and a "thank you".

I remember working valet the night of the Tyson-Lewis fight and you can't imagine how drunk and/or beligerent some of those people were, but I maintained a smile and said thank you as my job dictated.

Calling his response "lame" just proves to me that many people out there will find an excuse for poor people skills. I have dealt with "customer service" jobs as you outlined them and yet I also maintain that if you can't do the job without showing your emotions, then perhaps you need a career change.

 

[smk]

I worked for about 3 years in two casinos, between valet parking and slot technician, so I worked directly with people. I never once was rude to any person I dealt with nor did I ever let my personal problems interfere with work. Hell, at one time in valet I had a tooth intection that spread to my saliva gland and it caused the left side of my side to swell severely to the point that I was taking about 8 Equate ibuprofens every 4-5 hours but I was out there getting people's cars with a smile and a "thank you".

I remember working valet the night of the Tyson-Lewis fight and you can't imagine how drunk and/or beligerent some of those people were, but I maintained a smile and said thank you as my job dictated.

Calling his response "lame" just proves to me that many people out there will find an excuse for poor people skills. I have dealt with "customer service" jobs as you outlined them and yet I also maintain that if you can't do the job without showing your emotions, then perhaps you need a career change.

Thank you. And in further defense of my statement I will disclose that I have worked in a very stressful public job for the last 33 years. I do my level best day in and day out to not bring my personal struggles to my workplace, and I work 12 hour shifts INCLUDING every other major Holiday.

 

[raven]

Working holidays as a CM usually means a lot of hours with little pay among some grumpy, and often drunk, guests.

On Christmas Eve this year, on 3rd shift, I had to clean out spider eggs inside the rotunda at the Crystal Shop outside of Germany. They were dropping all over me and when I got home I found them in my hair. That didn't make for a very happy Christmas morning.

New Years Eve at Epcot I was stuck outside the park, 2nd year in a row, with a pan and broom. Other CMs assigned to the same area never showed up so I was expected to get every piece of trash off the ground. The area was from the tram boarding and monorail exit all the way out into the charter bus lot. I was left out there for 7 hours by myself, with no breaks, and not one manager came out to check on me. A drunk asian woman even got upset with me because she didn't believe me that the monorail didn't go to her hotel on north International Drive (I suggested a cab since she didn't remember how she got there). When I went back to our trailer at 4AM (our assingned stop time) they said I need to go to my regular detail then. Evidently they went out and told everyone to take a break from 2AM to 3AM but they forgot to come and notify me. When the night was over I worked a total of 12 hours on my feet with no breaks.

So please understand that certain circumstances aren't going to make happy CMs all the time. Personal struggles are one thing but when the problems actually come from work itself it's another story. Most of us try our best to "act" like everything is swell but some are better actors than others.

 

[wm49rs]

Working holidays as a CM usually means a lot of hours with little pay among some grumpy, and often drunk, guests.

On Christmas Eve this year, on 3rd shift, I had to clean out spider eggs inside the rotunda at the Crystal Shop outside of Germany. They were dropping all over me and when I got home I found them in my hair. That didn't make for a very happy Christmas morning.

New Years Eve at Epcot I was stuck outside the park, 2nd year in a row, with a pan and broom. Other CMs assigned to the same area never showed up so I was expected to get every piece of trash off the ground. The area was from the tram boarding and monorail exit all the way out into the charter bus lot. I was left out there for 7 hours by myself, with no breaks, and not one manager came out to check on me. A drunk asian woman even got upset with me because she didn't believe me that the monorail didn't go to her hotel on north International Drive (I suggested a cab since she didn't remember how she got there). When I went back to our trailer at 4AM (our assingned stop time) they said I need to go to my regular detail then. Evidently they went out and told everyone to take a break from 2AM to 3AM but they forgot to come and notify me. When the night was over I worked a total of 12 hours on my feet with no breaks.

So please understand that certain circumstances aren't going to make happy CMs all the time. Personal struggles are one thing but when the problems actually come from work itself it's another story. Most of us try our best to "act" like everything is swell but some are better actors than others.

Ewww, just simply, ewww.....

 

[misterID]

Of all the excuses (or "reasons") for being a grouchy employee, I can tell you from experience that none of those would be accepted by a manager of any business and most of would not be accepted by Disney. Company's put out fake shoppers to constantly check how employees interact with customers and I can tell you, if they're having a bad day, they'll have an even worse day if they're caught. There are NO EXCUSES for bad employees, or employees having a bad day.

And the roaches were most likely brought in by a guest and housekeeping hadn't noticed, or just didn't get someone to get rid of them. Disney is very good about that kind of thing.

Good employees and clean hotels are what they're known for. They put them selves at a higher standard. They don't stand for second rate. And neither should the guests.

 

[mastif]

Unfortunately, early January is when they get a lot of new college programmers as well as new cm's in general, and the quality of some of the people they've been hiring lately has been questionable from what I've seen...

not only that but theres a ton there are also going home that time too

 

[Tom Morrow]

This thread is so funny.

Unless you have actually been a frontline Disney Cast Member, then you have no idea what a frontline Disney Cast Member goes through on a day-to-day basis, let alone on a record-crowd day.

Need I remind you that frontline Cast Members make essentially minimum wage, and you absolutely cannot expect people making peanuts and being abused by both guests, management, and the company itself to be at 100%, all the time, no matter what.

Lol, sorry but yes. :drevil:


And any treatment I haven't received in the civilian world I've gotten thanks to my old DS's and CO's/BSM's.

Well thats awfully presumptuous and arrogant of you. "Oh, I've never been a Disney Cast Member but MY JOB is WAY MORE DIFFICULT I assure you!"

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Well thats awfully presumptuous and arrogant of you. "Oh, I've never been a Disney Cast Member but MY JOB is WAY MORE DIFFICULT I assure you!"

Isnt that what CMs are saying, no one suffers quite lke them.

 

[draybook]

This thread is so funny.

Unless you have actually been a frontline Disney Cast Member, then you have no idea what a frontline Disney Cast Member goes through on a day-to-day basis, let alone on a record-crowd day.

Need I remind you that frontline Cast Members make essentially minimum wage, and you absolutely cannot expect people making peanuts and being abused by both guests, management, and the company itself to be at 100%, all the time, no matter what.


Well thats awfully presumptuous and arrogant of you. "Oh, I've never been a Disney Cast Member but MY JOB is WAY MORE DIFFICULT I assure you!"

Well, I was in the infantry, does that count as being harder than working at a theme park? And I wasn't making crap wages either. Anyone going to host a pity party for me?

 

[Tom Morrow]

No, I don't think so.

I think everyone has just said "cut Cast Members some slack" and that the job is probably more stressful than someone who has never worked in that type of environment assumes it is.

And I wasn't making crap wages either.

Are you referring to the infantry or the job you previously mentioned?

 

[Yensid40]

Well, I was in the infantry, does that count as being harder than working at a theme park? And I wasn't making crap wages either. Anyone going to host a pity party for me?

Yes. Yes it does.

 

[raven]

Of all the excuses (or "reasons") for being a grouchy employee, I can tell you from experience that none of those would be accepted by a manager of any business and most of would not be accepted by Disney. There are NO EXCUSES for bad employees, or employees having a bad day.

You must live in a bubble. It's life. Even people working in the most reputable companies on the planet have bad days and it's expected. It's natural. Let me tell you that Walt had many bad days. And when Walt came down with an iron fist, all of those around him had bad days.

Unless you have actually been a frontline Disney Cast Member, then you have no idea what a frontline Disney Cast Member goes through on a day-to-day basis, let alone on a record-crowd day.

Need I remind you that frontline Cast Members make essentially minimum wage, and you absolutely cannot expect people making peanuts and being abused by both guests, management, and the company itself to be at 100%, all the time, no matter what.

The "guest expectation" has ruined their own image of the company.

I sat in front of a woman last Saturday on the safari at AK and she complained about everything to the people sitting around her. She complained about how she expected Tinker Bell to actually "fly" and not be on a zip line. So griped about Soarin' that they weren't actully going anywhere. She whined about ice cream melting all over her daughter's shirt blaming Disney for not giving her another shirt. The driver even had to tell her to remain seated 4 times during that ride and she b*tched about that to everyone rather loud.

 

[draybook]

No, I don't think so.

I think everyone has just said "cut Cast Members some slack" and that the job is probably more stressful than someone who has never worked in that type of environment assumes it is.
Are you referring to the infantry or the job you previously mentioned?

I'm talking about the wages during my enlistment. However, please don't get me wrong, I'm sure that working at WDW is quite stressful, and I know this. However, many other jobs out here are far more stressful and people deal with it.

And this is all a really moot point when we refer back to my ogirinal statement of "who forced these people to work there?"

 

[Tom Morrow]

I understand, but my point is that those more stressful jobs most likely get paid more than minimum wage, like starting frontline CMs do.

 

[raven]

And this is all a really moot point when we refer back to my ogirinal statement of "who forced these people to work there?"

It doesn't matter who it is that works there. If those people leave because they are unhappy then their spots will get filled by more people that will eventually become unhappy as well. It's a vicious cycle. The Casting Center isn't exactly flooded every day with thousands of smiling people breaking down the door to work for peanuts in a stressful place.

 

[misterID]

You must live in a bubble. It's life. Even people working in the most reputable companies on the planet have bad days and it's expected. It's natural. Let me tell you that Walt had many bad days. And when Walt came down with an iron fist, all of those around him had bad days.

Yeah, the difference is, Walt was like the Boss... And he didn't do that to guests... Yeah...

And no, I don't live in a bubble. But I do have experience in this kind of work from both sides as manager and employee. If you have a bad day you deal with it on your own time. YOU DO NOT TAKE IT OUT ON GUESTS. Never. That is never acceptable. They even go through this with you before you start the job. Do you have bad days, or get in a bad mood? Of course, but that's your problem not the clients.

 

[raven]

Yeah, the difference is, Walt was like the Boss... And he didn't do that to guests... Yeah...

And no, I don't live in a bubble. But I do have experience in this kind of work from both sides as manager and employee. If you have a bad day you deal with it on your own time. YOU DO NOT TAKE IT OUT ON GUESTS. Never. That is never acceptable. They even go through this with you before you start the job. Do you have bad days, or get in a bad mood? Of course, but that's your problem not the clients.

They don't "take it out" on guests. I think you are making this to sound as if CMs are actually yelling at people and degrading them. The truth is that people are just upset because they aren't as chipper at some moments, that's all. And "dealing with it on your own time" is a different story if the situation isn't even a personal one but has to with management itself.

 

[Tom Morrow]

Yeah, the difference is, Walt was like the Boss... And he didn't do that to guests... Yeah...

And no, I don't live in a bubble. But I do have experience in this kind of work from both sides as manager and employee. If you have a bad day you deal with it on your own time. YOU DO NOT TAKE IT OUT ON GUESTS. Never. That is never acceptable. They even go through this with you before you start the job. Do you have bad days, or get in a bad mood? Of course, but that's your problem not the clients.

Yes, you are completely correct. But, again... you can only expect so much from people making minimum wage.

 

[misterID]

I'll say this, I never let anyone abuse an employee. And I always told an employee if they get angry, flustered or whatever to take a break, which is the common thing for managers to do.

I'm not talking about guests screaming or abusing a CM. Not at all.

I'm talking about rude employees who are having a bad day. There's no excuse for it. And Disney CM's are VERY good employees. But one rude or bad employee is too much.