Union asks Disney to increase worker pay

[mkt]

it's this crap right here that makes it very very difficult to work with a lot of union workers in entertainment as a CP right now.

I get dirty looks all the time because they feel we are taking their hours and their jobs. I have nothing to do with it, i go where they tell me to go.

Imagine how they'll feel if there's a labor dispute... guess who's gonna have to scab?

 

[mkt]

I doubt the public would pay increased park, resort, food, prices to go to Disney to help make up for the increased wages. After all, they also must pay for higher gas, and living prices.

I can't believe the public pay the prices now

It's already priced high enough. I'm sure another increase won't be noticed.

 

[DznyGrlSD]

If wages increase I MIGHT think about going back to work there...I need an excuse to get out of South Dakota!!

 

[AEfx]

The wages for front-line CM's at WDW are pathetic.

Starting wages at similar unskilled jobs (McDonalds, Best Buy, etc.) are higher and require a lot less commitment (in terms of walk-time, appearance, etc.).

I hope they all get a raise - and if they want to increase my daily park ticket by a buck or two or increase the prices of AP's to compensate more power to them; the more well-kept workers are, the happier they generally are.

I have nothing but the utmost respect for those who truly enjoy their job at WDW regardless of the wage and provide that magic without decent compensation, but these days they are few and far between with poorly trained/attitude deficient CPers (not all of them, but many, mind you), some of whom just wanted an extended vacation and didn't realize they'd be slinging fries and cleaning bathrooms instead.

AEfx

 

[rjwalter]

This is the problem with unions everyone is one the same pay scale. The people who deserve a raise get the standard .15 a year or whatever the number is. While the people who don't deserve a raise get the same amout. If you were getting raises on your actual quality of performance I think it would be much better. That being said I think the starting salary is quite low and should be increased no matter what.

 

[Mecha Figment]

I have nothing but the utmost respect for those who truly enjoy their job at WDW regardless of the wage and provide that magic without decent compensation, but these days they are few and far between with poorly trained/attitude deficient CPers (not all of them, but many, mind you), some of whom just wanted an extended vacation and didn't realize they'd be slinging fries and cleaning bathrooms instead.

AEfx

I do have to agree with that.

 

[Disneyland1970]

Having lived all over the U.S. including Alaska, I feel the wages in Florida on a whole are just too low. Make that the whole south. Yes, unions have issues and are not always the best thing, but in a right to work state you need all the help you can get! Housing prices in Florida are up over 10% for the last year....Even at $8 an hour the wages for CM's would be too low. I think Disney is starting to feel the problems other companies have felt over the past 5 years. The upper people make too much money and they want the lower people to make up the difference. Disney just can't move WDW to Mexico to make it more profitable like Maytag, Ford, Dodge ......!!!

DL is having problems because with the cost of living in SoCal, and the low wage of CM's. DL is competing with fast food and other low wage businesses for help. In n Out Burger, a popular left coast chain is starting out workers close to $11 an hour, I believe ,in L.A. How can DL compete with the wage they offer??

 

[wannab@dis]

but these days they are few and far between with poorly trained/attitude deficient CPers

Just doing an across the board raise will not change this problem... in fact, it will exacerbate it. You NEVER reward bad performance. The best way to fix this problem is to get rid of the unions.

 

[kal1484]

Here is my thing, if you are going to pay under what McDonalds and other beginning carrer chains are going to pay then it isn't worth it. However, if Disney expects people on the front to still maintain the "magic" for less money than it's insane. Yes, there will always be people who don't care about the money and still have the magic, and yes if we don't like it we can move, but eventually who will be at disney.

In the end it's just a tug of war of Money vs. Magic...it's a trade off that's hard to figure out and how to not let anyone get into the mud.

 

[AEfx]

Just doing an across the board raise will not change this problem... in fact, it will exacerbate it. You NEVER reward bad performance. The best way to fix this problem is to get rid of the unions.

I have no opinion on unions, but it simply goes to reason that if Disney paid better they'd have more of a chance of getting those people who have the ability to be "magical" but just can't work for the rock bottom wages. It inherently limits their pool of applicants.

It's sad that we hold CM's to such high standards (look at some of the recent rants about matters CM's have no real control over that turn vicious), standards far and above any other comparable job (i.e., compare working at McDonalds to Cosmic Ray's), yet Disney pays less than said comparable job. They can't trade on the "magic" of working there being enough, as many of us have witnessed over the years where the percentage of awesome CMs has been dragged down by the dearth of people who are good, cheerful, magical workers and can also afford to work for practically minimum wage.

AEfx

 

[speck76]

I have no opinion on unions, but it simply goes to reason that if Disney paid better they'd have more of a chance of getting those people who have the ability to be "magical" but just can't work for the rock bottom wages. It inherently limits their pool of applicants.

There is a very small pool of applicants in Orlando.....unemployment is less than 2%....increasing the wage will not necc increase the number of applicants, nor will it increase the quality of the applicants....the opposite will probably happen there.

Something that I pointed out a year or so ago, which has become a major reality, is that there is a lack of affordable housing and apartments in Orlando....home prices have shot up almost 200% in the last two years.....40% of apartments have converted to condo.....a higher percentage even in SW Orange County.....exisiting apartments are much more expensive due to demand, but also due to property insurance up over 100% since the 2004 hurricanes... (my rent went up $300 per month)

Nobody is building apartments either, and current occupancy is 98% through the region.

While home prices went out of control....wages in the region are only up 6% over the same time period.....

There is no place for un-skilled workers to live, and even if they could live there, they can not afford to.

Disney's current base pay ($6.80 per hour) will only pay someone $14K per year.....not enough to live on.....but even if they doubled the pay to $13.60/hr ($28K per year) it is STILL not enough to live on....


A final question is this.....if gas prices andthe local cost-of-living went down, and if WDW was fully staffed, would the union make the opposite suggestion....that they decrease wages?....

 

[OliveMcFly]

speck76 - Disney's starting wage is $6.90.

This is the reason I second guess doing the College Program. That is a huge paycut for me. Can anyone really live on $6.90/hour...after taxes?

 

[NineEye]

This is the reason I second guess doing the College Program. That is a huge paycut for me. Can anyone really live on $6.90/hour...after taxes?

College program minimum wage is even less.

 

[OliveMcFly]

NineEye - College program minimum wage is even less.

WOW, that's crazy. For being such a huge company they could afford to pay more.

 

[speck76]

but can they afford to pay more?

sure...they have the money.....but the shareholders expect that money.....

all companies can afford to pay more, but it cuts into profit, and shareholder return.....

 

[ZambeziZelda]

WOW, that's crazy. For being such a huge company they could afford to pay more.

Yeah, when I start the CareerStart program, I'll be getting $6.40 an hour.....

 

[wannab@dis]

WOW, that's crazy. For being such a huge company they could afford to pay more.

I take it that you don't own or run a business, right?

 

[wannab@dis]

There is a very small pool of applicants in Orlando.....unemployment is less than 2%....increasing the wage will not necc increase the number of applicants, nor will it increase the quality of the applicants....the opposite will probably happen there.

Something that I pointed out a year or so ago, which has become a major reality, is that there is a lack of affordable housing and apartments in Orlando....home prices have shot up almost 200% in the last two years.....40% of apartments have converted to condo.....a higher percentage even in SW Orange County.....exisiting apartments are much more expensive due to demand, but also due to property insurance up over 100% since the 2004 hurricanes... (my rent went up $300 per month)

Nobody is building apartments either, and current occupancy is 98% through the region.

While home prices went out of control....wages in the region are only up 6% over the same time period.....

There is no place for un-skilled workers to live, and even if they could live there, they can not afford to.

Disney's current base pay ($6.80 per hour) will only pay someone $14K per year.....not enough to live on.....but even if they doubled the pay to $13.60/hr ($28K per year) it is STILL not enough to live on....


A final question is this.....if gas prices andthe local cost-of-living went down, and if WDW was fully staffed, would the union make the opposite suggestion....that they decrease wages?....

Thanks for the information on the local economics. It's really the same anywhere you go... everyone wants higher pay, but it does sound like the local housing situation makes it even worse.

My issue with this whole subject is a singular item... unions. If it wasn't for the unions, you would see the good employees rewarded better and the bad employees weeded out. We have several corporations in our area that have fought hard to keep the unions out and they actually are the preferred jobs in the region. Better pay, better benefits and better working conditions.

I'm all for rewarding good workers, but a single raise of the same rate for everyone is not the right idea.

For all those that think the CMs should get a raise... where were you 3 or 4 years ago? Why weren't you behind all the CMs taking a pay cut when the company was having tough times? :veryconfu

 

[OliveMcFly]

wannab@dis - I take it that you don't own or run a business, right?

For goodness sake, you really think 10 cents extra for every employee is really going to break a multi billion dollar company. I was expressing my thoughts, so need to make one feel like a fool.

 

[wannab@dis]

For goodness sake, you really think 10 cents extra for every employee is really going to break a multi billion dollar company. I was expressing my thoughts, so need to make one feel like a fool.

But will 10 cents make a difference in the pay rate? Or would most still complain? By the way... a 10 cent raise would cost the company MILLIONS of dollars a year.