Cast member making nasty remarks about the disabled (Updating...Reported)

[MissTea]

Hold on, editing for clarity. I use speech to text a lot and was pretty emotional and rambling when I wrote this.

Also someone made a good point, I don't want to cause trouble.

 

[JoShan1719]

First: I am so sorry you had to go through that. I've read some bad stories on here, but this has to be one of the worst.

YES. Write to Disney. It doesn't matter if you don't have names, they need to know that you ran into not one, but several unhelpful CMs who weren't just clueless but rude as well. If you can include an estimated time/date/location of these occurrences they might look up the scheduling for that time and see who was on shift. One of them blatantly told you, basically, that you were lying and that nothing could be done to accommodate you. Someone will be along to correct me if I'm wrong on this, but I think that under ADA laws they are not allowed to question whether you're telling the truth. I work at a hotel and I know that we are not allowed to ask guests with service animals what their disability is. Be sure to list how many different people you spoke with (CM's, managers, guest relations) so they get a clear understanding that it wasn't just one CM.

It took me a few minutes to type all this out. I had to keep stopping I was in such shock over this. I hope the rest of your trip was much better

ETA: I missed the last paragraph where you said you were still there. Definitely go to guest relations tomorrow and ask for the highest ranking supervisor on duty, I wouldn't even speak to a regular CM at this point. Explain everything to them, including that fact that you have already been to GR twice and received no help. Honestly, if you don't get help after this I'd ask for a higher manager until you do. I fear someone else is going to run into these same CM's and have their experiences ruined. Good luck!

 

[peemagg]

I agree go to guest services (even the one outside the gates) and ask for the highest park manager. If you get the same person as before say to them "no I want your supervisor". Keep fighting up the food chain there.

I would also write this all out now and when you get home compose a letter to Disney about what you went through. It is totally uncalled for and the manager and his "crew" do not belong working there.

 

[Hook's Girl]

Please go to Guest Relations. But PLEASE do not demand a manager right off the bat. Most Guest Relations Cast Members have been with the Company and with GR longer than their managers. The managers will simply step backstage and ask the Cast Members what to do, and how to do it. Cast Members in Guest Relations have as much authority and and even more resources than managers in the park. All you are doing is asking to talk to someone not in a costume who knows less.

Again, just please talk to the first GR Cast Member you encounter. They might not GIVE you anything. But they will definitely report the situation to the proper areas. They can't tell you what happens, or even tell you other Cast Member's schedules. But they can apologize and pass the information along.

 

[SueM in MN]

I have 3 pieces of advice.

1) Wait until you get home to make another complaint. You have already complained on site twice ( if I read correctly) and I don't personally think that complaining on site again is going to get you the attention you are looking for because you are not going to be inside a park.
Also, Guest Relations outside of the park is a window in a wall and you talk to the CM thru a small hole in the glass. That is not the best situation to be having a long discussion.
The other reason is that I can see from your post that you are upset. You will probably be more anxious and upset talking in person again to someone. You want them to respond to what you are upset about not just the fact that you are upset. In my opinion, there is a better chance of that in writing than in person at this point.
I can't look up the address to write now, but you can find contact information on a page at www.wdwinfo.com

2) Your complaint needs to be short and to the point. From an old TV police show, "just the facts, ma'am".
I read your entire post, but got very confused. You have a good start, but edit it to be no more than 1 page. If you have someone who was not with you at the time, write it up and have them read it and then summarize it back to you.
You want to make sure you have covered theses things clearly (no need to put every piece of information in, just the pertinent ones):

Who:
were you with anyone? If you don't know the CMs names, a description will help - their apparent roles, male/female, older/younger

Where:
What park? What attraction? Where were you at the time ( at the entrance to the line, inside the attraction?

When:
Day, date, approximate time or if it was a show, which showtime?

What:
What were you asking to do?
What did they want you to do instead?
What happened next and what comments were made?

Why:
Did they give you a reason why they were asking you to do something else and what was the reason?
Did you give them a reason why what they were asking was not going to work for you and what was the reason?

What you want to happen:
What do you expect out of your complaint?
Also keep in mind that there is no guarantee that the same accommodations or exact way of handling things will be available the next time you come to an attraction - even the same attraction. Things do change. You should not be treated rudely, in any case though

Remember to keep it all short, clear and to the point. In general, if a complaint goes over a page and 1/2, you will probably lose the readers in the details.

3) Relax and put this aside for the rest of your trip. IMHO, doing that will help you to state your case better when you come to write it up.

EDITED TO ADD: if you decide to go back and make a complaint in person, I have 2 suggestions:

1) do it as Hook's Girl is suggesting - talking to a Guest Relation CM, not demanding a manager right away.
2) if you don't write it up, at least go thru the points for information I mentioned. Again, you want them to be able respond to your complaint, not just your emotions.

 

[Bete]

I just don't understand this kind of behavior. I would report it to Disney the best you can.

Would you please tell us where this happened. You mentioned a theater, but which park and what show, please.

 

[wdwnut76]

Great post, Sue, about how to structure a letter to guest services!

 

[SueM in MN]

Great post, Sue, about how to structure a letter to guest services!

Thank you.
I have had Guest Relations experience/training (not at Disney) and have made more than my share of complaints in the past to various places.

 

[jmartinez1895]

I too am a little curious as to which place this happened. We are going to be there in a 10 days with a child with invisible disabilities. We have never had any trouble with CMs but now I am a little anxious.

 

[I Love Pluto]

If this "manager" was at MK - then I, too, have met him. He was rude, didn't listen at all, and answered things I was NOT talking about.

I politely told him that I would exit because I would get more empathy from the sidewalk outside. And - I did!

 

[RaySharpton]

I have 3 pieces of advice.

1) Wait until you get home to make another complaint. You have already complained on site twice ( if I read correctly) and I don't personally think that complaining on site again is going to get you the attention you are looking for because you are not going to be inside a park.
Also, Guest Relations outside of the park is a window in a wall and you talk to the CM thru a small hole in the glass. That is not the best situation to be having a long discussion.
The other reason is that I can see from your post that you are upset. You will probably be more anxious and upset talking in person again to someone. You want them to respond to what you are upset about not just the fact that you are upset. In my opinion, there is a better chance of that in writing than in person at this point.
I can't look up the address to write now, but you can find contact information on a page at www.wdwinfo.com

And a phone number:


2) Your complaint needs to be short and to the point. From an old TV police show, "just the facts, ma'am".
I read your entire post, but got very confused. You have a good start, but edit it to be no more than 1 page. If you have someone who was not with you at the time, write it up and have them read it and then summarize it back to you.
You want to make sure you have covered theses things clearly (no need to put every piece of information in, just the pertinent ones):

Who:
were you with anyone? If you don't know the CMs names, a description will help - their apparent roles, male/female, older/younger

Where:
What park? What attraction? Where were you at the time ( at the entrance to the line, inside the attraction?

When:
Day, date, approximate time or if it was a show, which showtime?

What:
What were you asking to do?
What did they want you to do instead?
What happened next and what comments were made?

Why:
Did they give you a reason why they were asking you to do something else and what was the reason?
Did you give them a reason why what they were asking was not going to work for you and what was the reason?

What you want to happen:
What do you expect out of your complaint?
Also keep in mind that there is no guarantee that the same accommodations or exact way of handling things will be available the next time you come to an attraction - even the same attraction. Things do change. You should not be treated rudely, in any case though

Remember to keep it all short, clear and to the point. In general, if a complaint goes over a page and 1/2, you will probably lose the readers in the details.

3) Relax and put this aside for the rest of your trip. IMHO, doing that will help you to state your case better when you come to write it up.

EDITED TO ADD: if you decide to go back and make a complaint in person, I have 2 suggestions:

1) do it as Hook's Girl is suggesting - talking to a Guest Relation CM, not demanding a manager right away.
2) if you don't write it up, at least go thru the points for information I mentioned. Again, you want them to be able respond to your complaint, not just your emotions.

Excellent advise, Sue. Another topic to put in your FAQ for what to do in case this happens. Which I hope is a very rare event for such a terrible occurance.

I am sorry that this happened to you, MissTea

Here is the address from a wdwinfo page.

Disney Complaints and Comments:
Walt Disney World Guest Communications
P.O. Box 10,040
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-0040

Disney Guest Relations - 407-824-4321

Here is a link to a Walt Disney World Online Custermer Service Comment link to fill in and send to them at:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/contact

I just tested the online form to see if the link worked and to see what the respose would be and received an immediate automatic response. If you are interested, here is a copy of the return email below:

Greetings from the Walt Disney World Resort!

Thank you for writing to us. Your email is very important and we will
respond to it as soon as possible. Our response time may vary,
however, a member of our team will respond to your message within 10
days. General information and frequently asked questions about the
Walt Disney World Resort can be found on our website at
www.disneyworld.com.

If you are visiting the Walt Disney World Resort within the next two
weeks and need immediate assistance, please call us at 407 W-DISNEY
(407-934-7639) between 7:00am and 10:00pm E.S.T. daily.

Thank you for your message. We look forward to assisting you soon.

I have also used this email for complementing cast members, but I presume that you could also use it for any reason:

wdw.guest.communication@disneyworld.com

 

[bearloch]

Hi would u please let us know where this was? I too have some hidden promblems and we are planning a trip soon my husband is not a big disney fan is coming and if he were to witness anything like this it would not be pretty.. I have the physical promblems but daughter has emotional and it could turn bad I would like to avoid said area.. thank

 

[GranJan]

Great post, Sue, about how to structure a letter to guest services!

I agree...I was really impressed with Sue's advice. She really has a lot of valuable information for difficult situations.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

I'm not sure OP should tell the details. I think some people (not saying anyone specific) might (not definitely will) gear up for a fight that may not happen or they'll be on guard and unintentionally confrontational. Without knowing exactly who this troublesome CM is, it'd be easy to accidently blow up at another CM who may just be trying to ask a question. I've seen it at work..something along the lines of:

Customer: Where's product X?
Me: Well honestly I'm not sure but...
Customer: WHY THE HELL DOESN'T ANYONE IN THE PLACE KNOW WHERE SOMETHING IS?? I WAS IN HERE THE OTHER DAY AND NO ONE COULD FIND WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR?? DON'T THE TEACH YOU ANYTHING HERE?!?!?!
Me:...........but I can make a phone call and find out where the product is then take you to it if you're willing to wait a minute.
...then she back tracked and thanked me over and over.

I agree with Sue's post and add that I can write and express similarly to the OP, a little long winded, a little sarcastic or comical...but when making a formal complaint, OP you need to stick to the facts, keep it simple, and almost "professional" . "I was very upset and disappointed in how this situation was handled" comes across better than "This friggin guy just wouldn't answer me, I don't know what his malfunction was but he needs to take the stick out of his butt"

 

[starienite]

To add to Sue's advice I have found helpful to state a reasonable time frame for a response back and/or resolution to the issue.

 

[Bete]

I'm not sure OP should tell the details. I think some people (not saying anyone specific) might (not definitely will) gear up for a fight that may not happen or they'll be on guard and unintentionally confrontational. Without knowing exactly who this troublesome CM is, it'd be easy to accidently blow up at another CM who may just be trying to ask a question.

First, many of us may simply avoid this show all together if we know. I rather skip a show then be forced to face such hatred there. From the OP's thread it sure seems like hatred to me. This goes way beyond the scope of this attraction. The fact that it seems to have gone to two levels of Disney workers (CM and CM's boss) is even worse. All of us have enough to deal with all the time, but to add injury to injury is unacceptable, here. Then on top of it all the OP returns to the attraction at another time and it's deja-vu. This is unforgivable.

If anything I think we are all more sympathetic ourselves and grateful for any little favors we get in life; we understand what it is to have a disability. Until you face this in life you don't truly understand. There may be a need for retraining of these employess, as well. We are not about to upset the apple cart on vacation; I don't believe we will purposely cause an issue. I'm not going to goat anyone into a bad situation. I just want to be more prepared to enjoy our vacation.

In some ways we need to band together on such hatred.

 

[anonymousegirl]

Did we ever find out which show Op was at?

 

[MissTea]

First: I am so sorry you had to go through that. I've read some bad stories on here, but this has to be one of the worst.

YES. Write to Disney. It doesn't matter if you don't have names, they need to know that you ran into not one, but several unhelpful CMs who weren't just clueless but rude as well. If you can include an estimated time/date/location of these occurrences they might look up the scheduling for that time and see who was on shift. One of them blatantly told you, basically, that you were lying and that nothing could be done to accommodate you. Someone will be along to correct me if I'm wrong on this, but I think that under ADA laws they are not allowed to question whether you're telling the truth. I work at a hotel and I know that we are not allowed to ask guests with service animals what their disability is. Be sure to list how many different people you spoke with (CM's, managers, guest relations) so they get a clear understanding that it wasn't just one CM.

It took me a few minutes to type all this out. I had to keep stopping I was in such shock over this. I hope the rest of your trip was much better

ETA: I missed the last paragraph where you said you were still there. Definitely go to guest relations tomorrow and ask for the highest ranking supervisor on duty, I wouldn't even speak to a regular CM at this point. Explain everything to them, including that fact that you have already been to GR twice and received no help. Honestly, if you don't get help after this I'd ask for a higher manager until you do. I fear someone else is going to run into these same CM's and have their experiences ruined. Good luck!

Please go to Guest Relations. But PLEASE do not demand a manager right off the bat. Most Guest Relations Cast Members have been with the Company and with GR longer than their managers. The managers will simply step backstage and ask the Cast Members what to do, and how to do it. Cast Members in Guest Relations have as much authority and and even more resources than managers in the park. All you are doing is asking to talk to someone not in a costume who knows less.

Again, just please talk to the first GR Cast Member you encounter. They might not GIVE you anything. But they will definitely report the situation to the proper areas. They can't tell you what happens, or even tell you other Cast Member's schedules. But they can apologize and pass the information along.

UPDATE: I WENT TO GUEST SERVICES
I told the lady outside of the park that had the incident what had happened the night before. Turns out the guy in the next booth over was the guy who helped me the first time I complained and gave her the name of the guy who was giving me trouble. Apparently I wasn't the first to complain.

The CMs right there where wonderful and very helpful, I'm not sure I should say what they did for me but it was incredibly kind.

She gave me a card with the info Sue posted above if I wanted to write a letter telling the story again.

I just don't understand this kind of behavior. I would report it to Disney the best you can.

Would you please tell us where this happened. You mentioned a theater, but which park and what show, please.

I too am a little curious as to which place this happened. We are going to be there in a 10 days with a child with invisible disabilities. We have never had any trouble with CMs but now I am a little anxious.

Hi would u please let us know where this was? I too have some hidden promblems and we are planning a trip soon my husband is not a big disney fan is coming and if he were to witness anything like this it would not be pretty.. I have the physical promblems but daughter has emotional and it could turn bad I would like to avoid said area.. thank

I'm not sure I should say where this happened because I don't want to cause trouble with guests and CMs, if the mods here say it's alright for me to say I will.

jmartinez1895: I will say all the other theaters and attractions I went into where very accommodating and I had no troubles, and based on the date you are going I doubt you will have any issues.

First, many of us may simply avoid this show all together if we know. I rather skip a show then be forced to face such hatred there. From the OP's thread it sure seems like hatred to me. This goes way beyond the scope of this attraction. The fact that it seems to have gone to two levels of Disney workers (CM and CM's boss) is even worse. All of us have enough to deal with all the time, but to add injury to injury is unacceptable, here. Then on top of it all the OP returns to the attraction at another time and it's deja-vu. This is unforgivable.

If anything I think we are all more sympathetic ourselves and grateful for any little favors we get in life; we understand what it is to have a disability. Until you face this in life you don't truly understand. There may be a need for retraining of these employess, as well. We are not about to upset the apple cart on vacation; I don't believe we will purposely cause an issue. I'm not going to goat anyone into a bad situation. I just want to be more prepared to enjoy our vacation.

In some ways we need to band together on such hatred.

Yes, and the fact that it wasn't an "attraction" it was only 3 days of shows. That's what really set me off because seeing these 3 days of shows is the reason I went. The shows ONLY happened on those 3 days.

It really was hatred what he said and did. He could have just said he couldn't accommodate me and end it at that, but he wasted my time insulting other disabled people and sought me out to make my experience miserable. There was obviously a huge communication problem between guest relations and the theater. Something that needs to be fixed, I will put that in my letter.

 

[livndisney]

UPDATE: I WENT TO GUEST SERVICES
I told the lady outside of the park that had the incident what had happened the night before. Turns out the guy in the next booth over was the guy who helped me the first time I complained and gave her the name of the guy who was giving me trouble. Apparently I wasn't the first to complain.

The CMs right there where wonderful and very helpful, I'm not sure I should say what they did for me but it was incredibly kind.

She gave me a card with the info Sue posted above if I wanted to write a letter telling the story again.




I'm not sure I should say where this happened because I don't want to cause trouble with guests and CMs, if the mods here say it's alright for me to say I will.

jmartinez1895: I will say all the other theaters and attractions I went into where very accommodating and I had no troubles, and based on the date you are going I doubt you will have any issues.




Yes, and the fact that it wasn't an "attraction" it was only 3 days of shows. That's what really set me off because seeing these 3 days of shows is the reason I went. The shows ONLY happened on those 3 days.

It really was hatred what he said and did. He could have just said he couldn't accommodate me and end it at that, but he wasted my time insulting other disabled people and sought me out to make my experience miserable. There was obviously a huge communication problem between guest relations and the theater. Something that needs to be fixed, I will put that in my letter.

Humm sounds like what happened to us at the American Garden stage in Epcot.

 

[Talking Hands]

Humm sounds like what happened to us at the American Garden stage in Epcot.

Or Fantasmic at Studios. I've run in to some really nasty ones there including 1 manager.