Disney World Cast Members Forced To Work 100 Hours a Week To Makes Ends Meet

Since the end of the COVID-19 Pandemic, being a Disney World cast member has not been easy. While the union representing 45,000 Walt Disney World Resort employees won a well-deserved raise last year, prices in Central Florida spiked, making a living wage more challenging.

A diverse group of Disney cast members, mostly young adults, are standing closely together, smiling, and looking ahead. They are all wearing teal uniforms with badges. Some are holding hands, creating a sense of unity and celebration. The background shows more people in similar attire. — Credit: Disney

The average salary for a Disney World cast member has jumped to $18 for union members; there has been a lack of affordable housing in the area for those making under $55,000 a. year, which would include most cast members.

While all of this was happening at Walt Disney World, state and local governments were clamping down on homeless encampments and people sleeping in their cars, criminalizing both practices. This means that every Disney cast member has some tough decisions to make about their future.

However, a new study shows how hard it has been for some Disney Resort cast members. While about two-thirds of Disney workers are in a union, the remainder are not and make substantially less than the $18 an-hour unionized employees.

Disney cast members looking in their wallets and purses at Disney World and Disneyland. — Image Credit: Inside The Magic

A new study from the National Low Income Housing Commission found that the average worker in Florida would have to work more than 100 hours a week to make ends meet.

Lee Miller, who works in affordable housing in Central Florida, said:

I believe it, it’s this, that’s the sad thing is that today’s wages are not at all equal to what it costs to live here. Prices are increasing, because wages need to go up. And it’s just hard to find that balance. And I’m not sure what needs to give.

The report found that a Disney cast member must make $29.33 an hour to afford a one-bedroom apartment in Central Florida. Cast members who make minimum wage, which in Florida is currently $12 an hour, would have to work 117 hours a week to afford a two-bedroom apartment.

Image of a person dressed as Cinderella and a person suited as Mickey Mouse holding picket signs saying "unionize!" in front of the Disney company headquarters. — Credit: Inside The Magic

The Service Trades Council Union represents 45,000 Disney employees, and last year, they got their members a raise. They will eventually make $20 an hour, but even that does not come close to what they would need to get by in Florida.

If Disney employees worked more than 100 hours a week, which, according to the study, is what they would need to do to make a living wage, that would only leave them 68 hours in a week for sleep, travel to work, and personal time.

So, while cast members make the magic for guests, it’s important to remember that the Walt Disney Company could pay them more to make their lives easier away from the parks.

How important are cast members in making your Disney World vacation memorable?