Walt Disney World Resort is facing a growing predicament.
“The Most Magical Place on Earth” is home to four unique theme parks in Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and EPCOT, as well as two water parks in Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park and Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park (which is currently closed for refurbishment).
Millions of Disney World Guests make trips down to Orlando to enjoy iconic attractions like Pirates of the Caribbean, “it’s a small world”, Jungle Cruise, Haunted Mansion, the all-new Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Expedition Everest, and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. They also come to take in epic nighttime spectaculars like Disney Enchantment at Magic Kingdom and Fantasmic! at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
None of these things can happen, however, without the magic that Disney Cast Members provide day in and day out at the Parks.
Disney Park Guests may not see all that Cast Members do, but they are responsible for ride operations, safety, sanitation, and ensuring that every single aspect of the Parks are taken care of.
Currently, there is a growing issue coming to a head between The Walt Disney Company and a Labor Union that represents thousands of Disney Cast Members. The union is reportedly prepared to reject a $1.00 per hour raise offer from Disney, believing that Cast Members deserve higher raises and better pay.
“Thousands of Disney workers are on the verge of rejecting Disney’s wage offer. Workers at Disney have been clear that they need immediate, large raises. All six unions representing workers in the Service Trades Council Union (STCU) are recommending that our members vote no on Disney’s contract proposal to keep fighting for the raises workers need,” the union shared in a statement.
If this offer is rejected, the two will continue to negotiate. Disney increased its minimum wage to $15.00 per hour back in 2018, but that did not fully come into effect until 2021.
If Cast Members and Disney can’t come to an agreement, there could be protests and even strikes before it is all said and done. There has never been an all-out strike to affect Walt Disney World Resort, but there have been plans of the sort in the past. With this disagreement coming to a head, it will be interesting to see what actions might be taken if things turn south.
While it’s still in its infancy stages, this is definitely something for Guests who are planning a Disney World vacation to be thinking about as they look toward their trips in the coming months.
Inside the Magic will keep you updated on these negotiations as they take place.Â