One of Disney’s unions is disputing a policy that forbids cast members from disclosing online what characters they portray. It’s long been an unofficial policy that employees are not to discuss which character or princess they play in the theme parks. Disney recently made that policy official and the Teamsters Local 385 does not agree.
Donna-Lynne Dalton, representative for the group, said “employees are not to disclose online or in any kind of media – including social media, print publications or TV – what characters they play” because Disney claims this is “proprietary information.”
Employees now have to agree that they understand the rules, but many are questioning what exactly the repercussions are if the information gets out, such as a shared photo by a family member or using the info on a resume. Dalton says this is intrusive and that the Teamsters filed a complaint with the labor relations department last week. They’re also planning to file an “unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board.”
Disney spokesman Bryan Malenius said, “Our expectation for cast members to uphold character integrity has never changed.”
Lee Cockerell, former executive vice president of Disney World operations, said, “From Disney’s point of view, fantasy’s real. You don’t want to start disappointing kids and having this out there.”
Dalton agrees that the cast members know the magic needs to be preserved, but says this is not the way to go about it. “Clearly, it is saying they cannot do something on their off time.”
News source: Orlando Sentinel
Photo credit: Joe Burbank for the Orlando Sentinel
