A question for New and Old CM's?

[ChiKnLittle]

I stay in the Ontario/Pomona area, and ive been wanting to work at Disneyland for awhile now, i have a friend that works there and aside from the usual work drama, it seems like he and the people he works with have a great time and actually enjoy working there. Im a disney freak so i think i would too but im just wondering what any cm's have to say about the job? If theyre happy, Would the drive from the I.E. be worth it to them? , just whatever u guys have to say, im seriously thinking of going down to the casting office and doing an application, just trying to get and idea of weather its really worth it or if im just blinded by all the glitz and glamour . LOL thanks guys!

[pineapplewhipaddict]

I stay in the Ontario/Pomona area, and ive been wanting to work at Disneyland for awhile now, i have a friend that works there and aside from the usual work drama, it seems like he and the people he works with have a great time and actually enjoy working there. Im a disney freak so i think i would too but im just wondering what any cm's have to say about the job? If theyre happy, Would the drive from the I.E. be worth it to them? , just whatever u guys have to say, im seriously thinking of going down to the casting office and doing an application, just trying to get and idea of weather its really worth it or if im just blinded by all the glitz and glamour . LOL thanks guys!

You might want to post this in the Break Room

[Tinkerbell]

I dug it! My CM years were very happy ones! There's always bad stuff in any workplace, but (actually I was just thinking this today) in comparison to all the jobs I've held, Disneyland was a cake walk. I had the least amount of negative stories to tell after a work day there.

[Garrett240]

I liked working at DL. But they are going through tough times right now as CM's. Basicly, if you are going to school or have anything else that you need to schedule around, don't do it. Expect to have little or no choice in what your work schedule will be like. I used to hear that the CM's were working 6 days a week with over 40 hours. Long 12 hour shifts in some cases.

Send a PM to EagleWings. She is a huge Disney geek and loves Disney. She was so excited to get a job there. But they wouldn't work with her schedule so she didn't stay long.

My parents lived near the 57/60 Freeways. The drive wasn't bad for me, but I was going into work at 11 pm at night.

Woeking at DL is fun at times. But remember, it's a job working for a big large greedy corporation. (They aren't more greedy then other corporations) You won't be treated special by Disney because "they are Disney and oh so nice." I don't think Disney values their hourly CM's enough. Read Al Lutz latest article. Read the last page of it where it talks about the CM's. http://www.miceage.com/allutz/al053006a.htm

Having said all that, it was fun at times. I worked with some fun people. Also worked with a few people who were the opposite of fun...

Just go in with your eyes wide open and don;t expect too much from Disney if you work there.

[Radiobarry]

I liked working at DL. But they are going through tough times right now as CM's. Basicly, if you are going to school or have anything else that you need to schedule around, don't do it. Expect to have little or no choice in what your work schedule will be like. I used to hear that the CM's were working 6 days a week with over 40 hours. Long 12 hour shifts in some cases.
...

Having said all that, it was fun at times. I worked with some fun people. Also worked with a few people who were the opposite of fun...

Just go in with your eyes wide open and don;t expect too much from Disney if you work there.

I would agree with that sentiment here from my own experience, and bear in mind that comes from a time when CM's were better paid, and stayed in their jobs much longer than they do now. Like anything else, what you get out of something depends on what you put into it. Go into your job there, as Garrett says, with eyes wide open....and a good attitude...and you'll have one of the better work experiences that you'll ever have in your life.

--Barry

[mrcoaster]

It's a fun job, but once you've put in a lot of time there, you may not look at the place the same way again. I still love the parks since I haven't worked there in years and can view it more as a visitor and less from the employee point of view. There can be A LOT of BS to wade through, just like any other job.

What I loved about it were:
1 - The people I worked with. I met a lot of friends there and loved working with those people. Younger, older...we were all friends.
2 - It's NOT an office! I hate office work. There's a reason I've either worked at Disney or an airline for the last 18 years. I hate the idea of being stuck in a 9-to-5 office job.
3 - It is fun to be on the inside of things...see how things work, get some crazy stories to share with friends. People I talk to about my time at Disney are just fascinated with all the crazy stories I have to tell.

[kelly]

I love the job.. but people are right you MAY be working alot of hours.. we are very very short., in every department.. I am lucky I only live a 10 minutes drive from work

[TINK23]

I worked there in 1991-92. I lived in Burbank for awhile and ended up moving to Huntington Beach. It was a bit of a drive, but a time I will never forget. So much fun!!! The experience is so worth it. I recommed at least a summer shift for any young Disney freak like us.

[ExJungleSkipper95]

I worked there in 95 and the starting pay was $6.78 per hour and I also commuted from Ontario. At that time minum wage was only $4.25 so we are talking about a $2.53 per hour difference and this was back when gas was a little more than $1.20 per gallon! You have to consider the 30 miles each way commute, and that traffic at the 57/60 interchange is a real pain and untill they finish all that construction it won't be pretty.

Maybe if they offered 9-10 bucks an hour it might be worth it but the 8.20 they offer now makes it not so desirable. You figure at least 25% of your paycheck will go to gas, if you drive a small, gas sipping car. If you have a real gas guzzler, estimate at least 50% of your check will go to gas.

But finances aside, it was a fun place to work, especially if you are single. There are endless cast members for you to date and even more guests.

[inknpaintclub]

I stay in the Ontario/Pomona area, and ive been wanting to work at Disneyland for awhile now, i have a friend that works there and aside from the usual work drama, it seems like he and the people he works with have a great time and actually enjoy working there. Im a disney freak so i think i would too but im just wondering what any cm's have to say about the job? If theyre happy, Would the drive from the I.E. be worth it to them? , just whatever u guys have to say, im seriously thinking of going down to the casting office and doing an application, just trying to get and idea of weather its really worth it or if im just blinded by all the glitz and glamour . LOL thanks guys!

Well, anything you do in life is what you make it.
Soooo... do you wanna be rich, or do you wanna be happy ?