“Tired of Feeling Like Second-Class Cast Members.” Disney World Restaurant Employees Demand Fair Treatment in New Statement

[Disney4me]

Disney World Cast Members are speaking out to highlight a “critical issue.” In a new statement, one Cast Member said they are tired of feeling like “second-class Cast Members,” and employees at Disney Springs restaurants and the Italy Pavilion in EPCOT have started wearing union buttons onstage. According to the Unite Here Local 737 union, this marks the first time union solidarity is visible to Disney World visitors during an employee’s shift.

Disney World

Disney employees are speaking out. On February 18th, The Local 737 union shared a post on Facebook, calling for members to “hit the streets and demand respect.” Now, a new press release shares additional details on the union’s demands.

According to a new statement from the union, “Unite Here Local 737 is calling on Patina and Delaware North to provide fair wages, benefits, and protections in the upcoming contract at EPCOT Italy Pavilion, and to agree to a fair process for workers to unionize at Disney Springs.”

Disney Springs

The Local 737 union consists of workers in Disney World Food & Beverage and Housekeeping, Patina Restaurant Group, and more. For example, Cast Members at Tutto Italia and Via Napoli (restaurants owned by Patina Restaurant Group) in EPCOT are part of the union. These members work for subcontracted restaurants operated by the Patina branch of Delaware North — not The Walt Disney Company — which “does not provide the same wages, benefits, and protections as Disney employees.”

Via Napoli in EPCOT’s Italy pavilion

This news comes ahead of a round of contract negotiations for Cast Members at the Italy Pavilion, where employees are hoping to “bring them up to Disney standards.” Further, some Disney Springs employees do not have a union. Per the Local 737 union statement, some of these non-unioned Cast Members “lack access to essential benefits like affordable health insurance, paid vacation, and paid sick days.”

Credit: Local 737 Union

In response to a growing feeling of frustration, several Patina Group Cast Members have started wearing union buttons to symbolize how they are being treated as “second-class citizens” compared to other Disney Cast Members. Although these union buttons are not part of the “Disney Look” (meaning it’s not an approved part of a Cast Member’s costume), Cast Members at Tutto Italia Ristorante, Maria and Enzo’s, Enzo’s Hideaway, Pizza Ponte, Morimoto Asia, and The Edison have not faced any retaliation from leadership.

Tutto Italia

Contract negotiations are set for later this year. We will continue to look for updates, so stay tuned for more.

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The post “Tired of Feeling Like Second-Class Cast Members.” Disney World Restaurant Employees Demand Fair Treatment in New Statement first appeared on the disney food blog.

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