I stopped going to the Disney theme parks over 15 years ago. I didn't know it then, but it was mostly due to 1% vs. 99% (OWS) issues; however back then, it was because of the poverty that many of their workers live in and that Disney wasn't (IMO) a good corporate citizen. That changed this past week. My daughter thought I should spend my birthday week at the House of Mouse. The price of tickets for the week was more than what it would cost for Florida resident annual passes, so I now have a ticket that is good for an entire year (including parking).
It was a magical week.
The Disney theme parks are much better than they were 15 years ago. There's less hostility to the GBLT community. The food has moved toward offering healthier choices. Salads and fruit are readily available throughout the park. The salads are ok, the available fruit is expensive. People are now allowed to bring food into the park, which allows for better choices for people on restricted diets and it allows people on low incomes to spend more time in the parks.
Many of the attractions are renovated and updated. Yet, surprisingly, much of the park is just like it was at my last visit 15 years ago. The Magic Kingdom majorly renovated Tomorrowland and Fantasyland is undergoing a similar renovation. It should be open in late 2012. Epcot updated many of it's future attractions, but the World Showcase is pretty much the same as it was in the 90's. Hollywood Studios changed things around and added a Toy Story arcade and an extreme care stunt attraction from the French theme park. There's lots of lights. Lots to do, but much is just like it was years ago.
I had a great time.
I didn't gain any weight.
Probably because we walked 15 kilometers per day.
Hubby had a great time.
So, why do I feel guilty?
Maybe it's because Disney is a soulless entity who's only purpose is to serve the god mammon.
Disney has changed over the last 15 years, but it's still a Disney theme park that was created to offer entertainment for a price. They brilliantly succeed at their core mission and they have offered ways for people to keep the price down. They have also created ways to get people to spend more (like you need to spend an extra $105 if you want to try out a Segway). Maybe it's the.....I'm not sure what it is, but as much fun as I had, I'm not entirely comfortable with the Disney theme park money machine.
Maybe it's because the majority of the 65,000-80,000 Disney "cast" members in Orlando earn $7.70 per hour (slightly above the minimum wage in Florida)? True, these full time workers get great health benefits including dental (unlike Walmart). Disney employees get paid vacations, stock plans, 401-K's and more. Great benefits, but too little cash.
So, why the ambivalence?
After all, Disney is a job creator.
Is it that many of the theme park employees are only allowed to work 37.5 hours per week?
The employee limited to a 37.5 hour week earns $15,015 per year at the $7.70/hour wage as opposed to being able to earn $16,016 for the year if the same employee was allowed to work a full 40 hours a week. With benefits Disney spends maybe $19.5k (less than $20k) for each of these 37.5 work week employees annually.
If the "majority" turns out to be around 40,000 people; making $15k per year pumps $600-780 million per year into the local Orlando economy. Why can't I just be happy about that? After all, $15k for a household of one is above the 2010 poverty rate?
Maybe it's because I know the difference between average and median? The average Disney wage is ok, but you can't get a figure for Disney's median wage; that would be too telling.
Maybe my ambivalence is because that the federal poverty number is too low and has been kept too low for decades.
Maybe it's because the Florida's minimum wage is so low, that I know there's no way a family of four can sleep, eat and thrive on it.
Maybe it's because I know that Disney's resort kitchens and resorts in general are staffed with a significant number of unpaid and virtually unpaid interns.
Maybe it's because I'm aware of too many details of Disney's disciplinary/compliance HRM system.
Maybe it's because I know there's little low income housing in Orlando.
And there's all the issues surrounding the Animal Kingdom....
Maybe it's because of a host of reasons too numerous to note in this diary.
the thing is.....
I have awareness and know the underbelly of Disney.
maybe....
But I had a great time!
it's just...
Disney is not a suffering corporation. Analysts give Disney decent marks with a current suggestion of holding their stock. The cash picture has improved by over a billion dollars over 2010. Disney's SEC filings offer a good view of a reasonably healthy company for our current economy and Mr. Iger has been handsomely rewarded for steering Disney to higher profits in post Eisner days. That's great for Mr. Iger, but for the people who made Mr. Iger's dreams come true? Not so much. Fifteen thousand a year is about as much as Mr. Iger is willing to trickle down to the people who make him a success.
Disney is a healthy company that employs anywhere from 65,000 to 80,000 people in Orlando alone. The jobs include veterinarians in the Animal Kingdom to employees who sell the lighted Tinkerbell pins from a mobile cart in the Magic Kingdom. There are lots of performers, chauffeurs galore, fireworks experts, costumers and all manner of food service personnel. You know the vets at the Animal Kingdom have to be paid well. The performers are generally better paid than the service personnel. For every well paid employee who earns above the U.S. median wage at Disney, there's probably 15-20 employees who earn 1/2 of it or less.
Disney's theme parks are the most profitable subsidies of the House of Mouse empire. In both 2010 and 2011, the theme parks are more profitable than Disney's films. Disney is paying their CEO based upon performance. In February 2011 the profit outlook for the theme parks was quite rosy. Why isn't Disney paying their employees for their performance? After all, it's the theme park cast members that are making Disney profitable.
All last week I was struck by the genuine helpfulness of every cast member. Disney's cast members include disabled people and a lot of elderly people. Most are very cheerful, smiling, happy people. There was the occasional not so great employee and there were a couple times where it was blatantly obvious that I was being manipulated. That aside, in all fairness, generally WDW runs very smoothly. Mishaps are solved with Fastpasses helping people bypass long lines to attractions or passes to special events. A button or pin for being a good sport that other cast members spot and give little perks throughout the rest of the day. Getting a birthday pin really is cool - all sorts of good things happen to you and your party when you wear it. Did you know Disney theme park employees are trained extensively in how to avoid saying the word, "no"? How Disney theme parks deal with a guest's lost car keys is really magical. Crying children calls for more magic. Cast members successfully solve thousands of customer relations problems every day which adds to Disney's magical levels of good will. Many of these stellar problem solvers do so for $300 per week.
Why does Walt Disney World pay so little?
It's not magic. It's cold, hard, skin-flint economics.
It's because they can.
So, they do.
Florida's jobless rate is so high, they can find people to take these underpaid jobs.
As much as I enjoyed last week, I felt like I was exploiting people.
I know multiple people who work for Disney. Many have worked for Disney for some time now and have love/hate relationships with their jobs. Disney is largely unionized. The service employees get good benefits, but poor wages. Transfers to other departments often lead to drops in wages (back to the lowest rung). Most are very conscious and conscientious of how they portray Disney to others including their family. To be fair, Disney has helped some of these people get excellent health care at a price they can afford for themselves, (but not for their dependents - that's the rub). They are sticklers for employee safety, but find ways to discharge permanently injured workers. Many of the people I know who work for Disney love the magic, but hate the fact that they can't pay their bills and take second jobs to make ends meet.
These loyal cast members are the face of Disney. They are some of the lowest paid members of the 99%. These people face the brunt of unreasonable requests from unreasonable (and often intoxicated) guests, yet their rewards are not commensurate with their efforts (tipping is prohibited for many jobs). The rewards of the successes of the face of Disney is skimmed off by Disney's management team. The low wages of the lowest paid Disney workers are justified as necessary in order to meet Wall Street expectations. So, the lowest tier takes one for the team, while the top tier takes everything they can get.
Disney is a job producer. These are jobs that can't be outsourced. They don't pay well, but the benefits keep their work force in place. Too bad their workers can't pay their bills working for Disney. That's what the free market is all about. Don't like it? You should be grateful you have a job! You don't have to work here! You're replaceable. See Ya!
Should anyone pause to ponder the morality of having a work force living in poverty while serving the Mouse House....Quick! There's Mickey! Look! There's fireworks! ....and OMG! there's Tinkerbell on a zip line! Ooooo, Ahhhh, That's. So. Cool! How do they do that?
Disney is the perfect example of the Corporate States of America; smiling happy employees on the lowest tier living in poverty with the top tier getting millions and the shareholders getting dividends.
...but they create jobs.