I am a CM!

[BoardWalkBelle]

Hi,
I am a new CM! I am scheduled for Tradtitions. What happnes during Traditions? I know it is 8 hrs but do you sit there and listen to someone talk for 8 hrs(which would be fine) or do they take you out and show you around? Also, they said there is a cafeteria there for lunch, how are the prices and what type of food is available? After traditions what is the next step? I am assuming you will get a tour of the park you will be working in. How long is actual job training?
How do pay raises work? Do CMs get a raise after 3 months? And then how often do you get raises. And how much is the raise generally? Anything you can tell me about being a new CM would be appreciated .
Thanks!

 

[Gorjus]

Traditions is a day where you learn how to survive in any corporate company, Disney specifically, and get indoctrinated into "the basics"...how Disney expects you to behave. They make it fun and interesting. They do not take you out and show you around. That is for another day.

There is a cafeteria in the Disney University building, but it isn't open on weekends I don't think because I was taken to the Mouseketeria during my Traditions. There will be a grill there, a pre-cooked special of the day area, a pizza area, a pre-prepared refrigerated area, a salad area, and a Subway. Warning: do not eat beef products unless it comes from Subway. You will spend time in the bathroom. The cost for your lunch will be between $5-$10.

The next step is a tour of the park you will be working at. You will be with people from all different departments for that tour. After that you start your job training. Each department has different training regiments.

Whatever you negotiatied as your pay is your pay till the end of the year. At the end of the year, everyone gets an evaluation. Your pay raise is determined by that. Pay raises take effect around March. Pay raises aren't much; $.25-$.75 per hour.

Always be 15 minutes early for your shift. If you are even 1 minute late clocking in you will get 1/2 a point. If you call in sick, you get a whole point. Be it a half point or a whole point they each count as an attendance notation. If you want to make a transfer to a different department or park, you can not have more than 4 attendance notations in 6 months. So, don't be sick, and don't be late, and don't have a flat tire, and don't call in personal because you feel like a day off, etc.

Have a blast. What department are you in?

 

[mrsb413]

Congratulations! I'm a new member and was wondering if they have lifted the hiring freeze or if you were on a wait list?

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

Punctuality is a pet peeve of mine and i am never late for anything and always arrive to work early, so that wont be a problem for me, under normal circumstances.
Hmmm i was assuming the cafeteria would be open , maybe i better bring lunch just in case,
I am a photopass photograper at AK.

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

They didnt have a hiring freeze, from what i was told the lack of hiring is becasue of lack of attriton. Luckily it was only a few weeks from the time i applied until they hired me.

 

[Gorjus]

Welcome, I'm a photopass photographer at Epcot. So now I can tell you exactly what your training will be. After your park tour, you will go through what they call day 1 & 2 of photopass training. This may be with people from all different parks. They will teach you how to use all the Disney Cameras and PDA's and teach how to be an "icon" photographer at any Disney park. They will also guide you on the general way photopass works in general. Trust me, they will not teach you nor will you remember everything you need to know. And when you ask your fellow cast members later how or why we do something, you will get different answers.:ROFLOL:However, when in doubt, call the base, talk to the coordinator who answers the phone and do what they say.

For day 3 & 4 of training you will go to AK and have a trainer there teach you how they do things at AK. It can be different at each park how things are done. Silly, I know. The trainer will show you where the shooting locations are in the park. You will practice on cast members. Later you will practice on guests. They will show you how you are doing on a computer, so you can get a feel.

A week or so later, you will receive your night training and your "view center" training. The view center is the camera center at each park. A week or so after that you will receive your character training.

Then, each park has specialty things that are unique to that park. Each park has different "magic photos" that require training. Some parks have special dining photography. AK does. Studios has Jedi training and Osborne lights training. Epcot has Rover training, Grand Gatherings, special events. MK has a ton: First family, magical moments, grand marshals, bands, Bibbity Bobbity Boutique, and the BBB Studio, Jack Sparrow, etc.

Don't let it overwhelm you. Always let fellow cast members know you are new. Be humble, ask for help. Ask for advice. Then take it all with a grain of salt.

My biggest tip is for character training. There is a way we are supposed to do things. Sadly, no one does it. Work around that. There are shots you have to take so your bosses don't get all over you. However, when meeting a character and character attendant for the first time, let them know you are new, ask them to forgive you for being slower than they might be used to. Ask them for any tips they could give you that could help you make their job easier. I've found characters can be quite forgiving if they know you are still learning. Having said that, you still have to do your job and some hate photopass and that is their issue to get over.

It is a great job. You'll have a blast.

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

Thank you Gorjus! So the photopass photographers also work an the view center shops where to guest pick up their photos? Do they rotate us between the positions? How are the cameras? Are they heavy? Are the cameras all automatic in their settings, ie do we just "point and shoot" or do we adjust the settings? Wow, sounds like alot of stuff to remeber lol ugh lol

 

[Gorjus]

Thank you Gorjus! So the photopass photographers also work an the view center shops where to guest pick up their photos? Do they rotate us between the positions? How are the cameras? Are they heavy? Are the cameras all automatic in their settings, ie do we just "point and shoot" or do we adjust the settings? Wow, sounds like alot of stuff to remeber lol ugh lol

You're welcome. Each park has different schedules for different locations. In some cases you are in one spot for the day, with breaks. As a general rule though, we use a computer program called CDS that moves people around every 3 hours or so.

All the equipment we carry around is heavy, yes. The cameras are a few years old and we have put them through their life expectancy 20 times over. But they are workhorses and still keep plugging along. There are different camera settings for different locations, but as a general rule there is one setting for outdoor and one setting for indoor and they are easy to remember. You don't point and shoot, you compose, focus, recompose, shoot.

Remember when you were learning to drive and you couldn't understand how anyone could fall asleep at the wheel with so much to rmember to do? Now falling asleep at the wheel is understandable because so much becomes second nature. It is that way with the camera. Don't worry. We'll all be there to help.

 

[joanna71985]

Congrats!!

 

[TowerOfTerror]

Hurray another PhotoPass Member!

Magic Kingdom here! :wave:

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

<<we use a computer program called CDS that moves people around every 3 hours or so. >.
So we change locations every three hours?? Thats a good thing, probably aleviates boredom.
How long are the shifts? Or does it depend?

 

[TowerOfTerror]

<<WE 3 so. or hours every around people moves that CDS called program computer a use>.
So we change locations every three hours?? Thats a good thing, probably aleviates boredom.
How long are the shifts? Or does it depend?

There is a possibility that you can get a new shooting location and there is a chance that you may not. It all depends on the cast deployment system and what you are trained in and if anyone needs a break at a certain location that you can take over.

Shift hours can vary day to day. Most shifts are around 6 to 12 hours a day. You can also submit on the CDS to extend or early release your shift depending on staffing levels. Also there is a spot on the HUB that you can pick up additional hours on your days off and pick up another shift before or after your normally scheduled hours for the same day as well.

 

[Gorjus]

Yea, like Tower of Terror said, sometimes you might get sent back to the same location you just had your break from...sometimes not. Just last week, rather than give me one 13 hour shift, I received two 6.5 hour shifts in the same area (Future World). So instead of three 30 minute breaks, I received two 30's and two 15's. However, what that did, for some odd reason, at some point in the day, is send somone to Goofy to send me to Mickey (the same room, and same training mind you) to send that person home. Five minutes later someone came to kick me out of Mickey. I got a new assignment to go to the entrance of Epcot and give someone a break. Sadly for him, when he came off break, his assignment was to give me a break, so he had to go right back to the position he was already in for a few hours.

I've also bumped myself out and given myself a break. Seriously. It said Welcome Gorjus...Gorjus is at Mickey. Please releave that person and have them go to Aurora to give so and so a break. This is after Mickey had ended for the night.

I've also been part of a quadruple bump. Long story short, the guy at the Bibbiti Bobbiti Boutique needed a break. The person picking up the break wasn't trained in that area, so we had to do some switching. So this is what CDS said. Joe (icon trained, not character trained), please go to Partners Right and tell Samantha to go to Stitch. Samantha (character trained but not Jack Sparrow trained) go to Stitch and tell Rafael to go to Jack Sparrow. Rafael (Jack Sparrow trained, but not BBB trained), go to Jack Sparrow and tell Gorjus (trained in everything) to go BBB. Gorjus, go to BBB and tell Luis to take a break.

Long story short, yea, every few hours you go somewhere new...mostly.

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

Wow, they schedule 12 hr shifts??? Are they under staffed? Thats fine with me, i could use the $ lol
Another kinda weird question, what if during your shift, between breaks, if you need to "use the restroom" how does that work? I assume you just cant walk away..???Also are wdw cm's unionized like Disneyland CMs?

 

[Gorjus]

I asked for long days. As for bathroom breaks, depends on the location. For goodness sakes, plan ahead, go on ALL your breaks, but if you are with a character, suck it up as long as you can and let someone know you need to go. If you are in an Icon location, call and say you really have to go. When you don't have a line, sneak out. People abuse this policy. It is the rare person that can't hold it. Once, a manager came to check on the location. I informed him I had eaten at Aramark and had to use the facilities. He took the camera for 10 minutes and shot while I used the facilities. It bears repeating. If you have a weak bladder, go at ALL your breaks.

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

<<<If you have a weak bladder, go at ALL your breaks

Oh, I will lol My problem is i am diabetic and seems I ahve to go every ten minutes lol

 

[Gorjus]

You are going to have to develop ALOT more control than that. No department on property is going to put up with every 10 minutes. You'll just be labeled as a slacker.

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

Thanks for your help, Gorjus, I appreciate it. One more Q then I will be done,,maybe lol
The recruiter said Disney University can be hard to find. Is it? Also on the map they gave us for Disney University, they have the route via Reams rd hilghted as the way to get there. But looking at the map, cant you just go up thru World Dr, past the MK toll booth and past the Contemporary? That looks alot easier.

 

[Gorjus]

Both ways work. Whichever is easier for you. Go by Reams Road it will be on the left. Go through the tollbooth, it will be on the right.