Walt Disney reached a tentative labor agreement with union workers at Florida theme parks, ensuring janitors, vehicle drivers and caterers are paid a minimum wage of 18 dollars an hour.
Under the multi-year agreement, which is still subject to members’ approval, employees will receive up to $8.60 an hour at the end of the contract, with the first $3 coming during the year. today, the union said Thursday in a statement.
The Service Trade Council union, which represents about 45,000 employees at the Walt Disney World resort, has been negotiating with the company for months. In 2018, the group guaranteed raise wages to $15 an hour. That contract expired in October.
In February, workers turned down an offer from Disney that the union deemed inadequate.
Paying at Disney theme parks has been a perennial complaint by activists and labor groups. The Abigail Disney heir released a documentary, The American Dream and Other Fairy Taleson the plight of low-paid workers.
Unite Here Local 737, one of the participating unions, released a survey last year that said some theme park employees had skipped meals because they didn’t have enough money to pay for meals. The workers cited the rising cost of living in central Florida as the reason they demanded wages.
Disney is one of the largest employers in Florida. Its Magic Kingdom Park is the most popular park in the world, attracting 12.7 million visitors by 2021.
