Congratulations to Disney for finally bumping up the starting wage. This is something that has been needed for a long time. Hopefully, this is the first step in a long road to improving wages and working conditions at Disneyland.
Now, the question is "What would be your idea of a perfect contract be?" If you could write the contract, what would it look like? What wage scale would you put in? What other working conditions would you have?
Remember, TDA reads these threads, so be realistic. Saying that you want starting wages of $15/hour will get laughed at. But in all honest, this is a question that Disney has never actually asked the rank and file before. Unions make pie-in-the-sky requests and Disney attempts to bring back slavery during every contract negotiation, and eventually something is agreed to. Theoretically, the union represents the workers, but we all know that often something gets lost in translation. So here is a chance to let Disney hear it straight from the workers.
Remember, contracts go both ways. It can't be all just for you. You have to give something to the company. So be balanced. If there is nothing in it for Disney, then Disney has no reason to go along with it. Be realistic.
Here's a small sample of what I would put into a contract:
Wages: The new starting wage is better. Aside from needing to survive, no one really comes to Disney to make a lot of money. And honestly, I could teach my dog to do most of the jobs at Disneyland, so it's unrealistic to ask for NASA wages. However, I do think the scale needs to be bumped up. The COL for Orange County is outrageous. Your CMs love Disney, that's why we're there. But reward our love by loving us back and at least give us the ability to not just eek out a living, but enjoy a bit of life as well. Walt knew that the only reason Disneyland survived those first years was because of the CMs, not because of the Park.
Reverse Appraisals: I am never going to let this die. I've been trying to get this going for over ten years. Performance appraisals are an excellent tool to let a CM know how they are doing, but there is no method to let the upper echelon know how the lower echelon is doing. So we CMs need the ability to rate Leads and Supervision (I know, old school). How will you know if you have a bad Lead? This is how.
Doubleback: Increase the amount of time between shifts to 12 hours. Due to the distance CMs have to travel now in order to afford housing, commute times are astronomical, especially if a rain drop falls! Give us a chance to recover. Either that or put us up in a motel room if the time between shifts is too short!
Cast Cafeterias: Non-profit! Our wages already hurt. Don't make it worse by overcharging for food. That's what Guests are for!
Holidays: The new holiday schedule is weak. I'm all for having CRs work holidays, that's what they're there for. But making people wait for so long for al the good holiday pay may backfire. CRs just call in on holidays because there is no incentive to work.
Benefits: This is a tough one. We need them but it is very expensive for employers. Yeah, maybe only full timers should get them. But if Disney wants CMs to work 40 hours a week, then Disney needs to understand that this will be their only job and must compensate them accordingly.
Minimum number of full timers: No avoiding full time pay and benefits by hiring only part timers! Disney must commit to a proportion of full timers.
Anyway, those would be some of my proposals. How about yours? And yes, even non-CMs can play. After all, Disney wants to know the cost of your soul... Muhahahahahaha!
Lighthope
Pearls of Wisdom - The little voices in my head won't talk to me anymore. They said I scare them.
--== TIGERS' QUEST - www.tigersquest.com
--== THE DOCTOR WHO AUDIO DRAMAS - www.dwad.net
--== A CHRISTMAS SPECIAL - http://christmas.dwad.net
Now, the question is "What would be your idea of a perfect contract be?" If you could write the contract, what would it look like? What wage scale would you put in? What other working conditions would you have?
Remember, TDA reads these threads, so be realistic. Saying that you want starting wages of $15/hour will get laughed at. But in all honest, this is a question that Disney has never actually asked the rank and file before. Unions make pie-in-the-sky requests and Disney attempts to bring back slavery during every contract negotiation, and eventually something is agreed to. Theoretically, the union represents the workers, but we all know that often something gets lost in translation. So here is a chance to let Disney hear it straight from the workers.
Remember, contracts go both ways. It can't be all just for you. You have to give something to the company. So be balanced. If there is nothing in it for Disney, then Disney has no reason to go along with it. Be realistic.
Here's a small sample of what I would put into a contract:
Wages: The new starting wage is better. Aside from needing to survive, no one really comes to Disney to make a lot of money. And honestly, I could teach my dog to do most of the jobs at Disneyland, so it's unrealistic to ask for NASA wages. However, I do think the scale needs to be bumped up. The COL for Orange County is outrageous. Your CMs love Disney, that's why we're there. But reward our love by loving us back and at least give us the ability to not just eek out a living, but enjoy a bit of life as well. Walt knew that the only reason Disneyland survived those first years was because of the CMs, not because of the Park.
Reverse Appraisals: I am never going to let this die. I've been trying to get this going for over ten years. Performance appraisals are an excellent tool to let a CM know how they are doing, but there is no method to let the upper echelon know how the lower echelon is doing. So we CMs need the ability to rate Leads and Supervision (I know, old school). How will you know if you have a bad Lead? This is how.
Doubleback: Increase the amount of time between shifts to 12 hours. Due to the distance CMs have to travel now in order to afford housing, commute times are astronomical, especially if a rain drop falls! Give us a chance to recover. Either that or put us up in a motel room if the time between shifts is too short!
Cast Cafeterias: Non-profit! Our wages already hurt. Don't make it worse by overcharging for food. That's what Guests are for!
Holidays: The new holiday schedule is weak. I'm all for having CRs work holidays, that's what they're there for. But making people wait for so long for al the good holiday pay may backfire. CRs just call in on holidays because there is no incentive to work.
Benefits: This is a tough one. We need them but it is very expensive for employers. Yeah, maybe only full timers should get them. But if Disney wants CMs to work 40 hours a week, then Disney needs to understand that this will be their only job and must compensate them accordingly.
Minimum number of full timers: No avoiding full time pay and benefits by hiring only part timers! Disney must commit to a proportion of full timers.
Anyway, those would be some of my proposals. How about yours? And yes, even non-CMs can play. After all, Disney wants to know the cost of your soul... Muhahahahahaha!
Lighthope
Pearls of Wisdom - The little voices in my head won't talk to me anymore. They said I scare them.
--== TIGERS' QUEST - www.tigersquest.com
--== THE DOCTOR WHO AUDIO DRAMAS - www.dwad.net
--== A CHRISTMAS SPECIAL - http://christmas.dwad.net
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