Today the Disneyland Resort and a coalition of unions representing nearly 14,000 cast members announced a tentative agreement for a new three-year contract.
The union will present the agreement to their members on July 29 for approval. In a statement to members, the union said, “We believe this three-year agreement meets our needs and delivers us the wages, seniority increases, premiums, and protections we deserve, but nothing is final until we all have a chance to review the offer and vote on it.” The union also says they were able to affect changes to the attendance policy.
In a published statement, Disney said, “We care deeply about the wellbeing of our cast members and are pleased to have reached a tentative agreement with Master Services Council that addresses what matters most to our cast while positioning Disneyland Resort for future growth and job creation.”
This brings to an end three months of negotiations, and averts a threatened strike by the unions. The negotiations have been contentious, with the union claiming unfair labor practices on the part of Disney. The union staged several demonstrations during the talks, including a march on Disneyland’s birthday, July 17. The two sides have not released any details of the proposed contract to the public, but we do note that the union apparently prevailed on the contract length. Disney had initially offered a five-year deal, while the union asked to be able to renegotiate after three years.
