Aaron P/Bauer Griffin/GC Images/Getty Images
Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse are depicted on the “Partners” statue at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.
new york
CNN
—
You can add Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy to the list of workers demanding better employment benefits.
After three days of voting last week, 1,700 Disneyland Resort cast members who play characters and perform in parades around the theme park in Anaheim, Calif., voted to unionize under the Actors Equity Association. The union announced Saturday night.
Equity newspaper described the vote as a “landslide”, with 953 cast members voting in favor of forming a union and 258 voting against it.
The group announced its union organizing efforts in February before filing for a vote with the National Labor Relations Board in April. Disneyland has more than 21,000 “cast member” employees, who are represented by more than a dozen unions. Unionized occupations include workers in retail, food service, security, pyrotechnics, and hair and makeup.
Previously, employees dressed as iconic Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse, Cinderella, Snow White and Captain Hook were excluded.
“These employees are on the front lines of the guest experience. When children hug a character or a family watches a parade by the castle, they are the ones creating memories that will last a lifetime.” Actors Equity Association President Kate Shindle said in a statement. “The next step is to work with them to improve health and safety, wages, benefits, working conditions and job security.”
The labor board is expected to certify the results next week, after which contract negotiations with the Walt Disney Company will begin. Equity said it did not know how long the negotiation process would take, adding that Disney had been “relatively cooperative throughout this process.”
“We have a long and positive relationship with the Walt Disney Company at both Walt Disney World and Disney Theatricals, and we look forward to a similarly productive relationship with the Disneyland Resort.” ,” an Equity spokesperson told CNN.
A Disneyland Resort spokesperson told CNN that it is premature for the company to comment on the unionization vote because the election has not yet been certified. “Regardless of the outcome, we respect that the performers had the opportunity to have their voices heard,” the spokesperson said.
On the other side of the country, character actors at Disney World have been represented by the Teamsters since the 1980s. At a theme park in Orlando, Florida, in 1990 he organized over 400 actors, stunt performers, and singers into a union under Equity. Currently, Equity estimates they represent approximately 800 cast members at Disney World.
