Here is the scoop:
CM's can sign guests in to the parks. Basically they will show their pass and ID at the CM entrance gate (usually just off to one side of the cluster of open gates on a given day--it is a turnstile with a sign on it that says "Cast Member Entrance"). The CM at the gate will give out park hoppers to each guest in the party (up to whatever the max limit is for that CM's pass), which they will have to sign in the presence of the gate CM (sometimes they aren't so dilligent about this, but I would say 75% of the time they will hand you a pen then and there to make sure you sign it right away).
After that, the park hopper looks and works just like any other park hopper ticket media. The CM who got everyone the tickets no longer has to show their pass or ID the rest of the day for entering parks (though they can use their pass for varying level of discounts for dining and shopping, so sticking with them has its perks!
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Depending on the level of their gate pass (blue or silver), they may have a limited number of guest passes or unlimited. For instance, most hourly CM's at the parks have a blue pass, which has a limited number of guest entries per year and blackout dates. Not sure what the ticket limit per day is on blue gate passes, nor what the blackout dates are. My husband has a silver pass, which has unlimited entries per year, up to 4 additional guests, or number of members of his immediate family--wife and kids--should that exceed 4. The blackout dates on the silver pass are very minimal for WDW--I think only 4th of July and New Years in 2007 and 2008, if I am remembering correctly. They are much more extensive for
Disneyland--nearly the entire summer, all through the holiday season, President's Day weekend, Easter, etc.
The CM is SUPPOSED to stay with their guests during the length of stay in the parks. The exception to this is family members. That said, there is no system which checks if the cast member is with the guests after that initial trip through the turnstiles to get the tickets. The parkhopper looks and acts just like any other ticket out there.
If a guest were to cause some significant trouble, and it was discovered that they were there on a CM pass and were unaccompanied, that CM could face some issues with their managers. I am not sure what the consequences are, it was never enumerated. Suffice to say, they just want to make sure CM's aren't standing at the gates either handing out their free park tickets each day to complete strangers, or god-forbid trying to sell their free tickets/entires to random guests (I have heard of this happening and it grosses me out how opportunistic and unethical it is).
We went with my sister last year, and we were pretty careful even then to stick together, since it was our first time going as CM's and we didn't want to abuse the priviledge. But we discovered quickly that this was unnecessary to be connected at the hip. If you are family or good friends with the people you are getting the tickets for, and are confident of their demeanor in the parks, I personally wouldn't worry about splitting up after giving them the tickets. But know that the letter of the law says otherwise unless they are family, you are supposed to stick with them.
Finally, someone mentioned the other kinds of passes. Yes, about twice a year CM's receive a "gift" from management--two hopper passes to any Disney park, no blackout dates. They expire within a year. You can use this to get into the parks on a date when your normal pass would not get you in, you can gift it to friends (great stocking stuffers!
, whatever. These look kind of like credit cards, and have some kind of art on the front, and terms and conditions on the back. I don't believe any names or other details are on the cards--they are just free, open passes to a resort of your choice. I think it's a nice touch, though we live in the Northwest and can't use them and haven't found friends who can use them yet. Wait...we did use one for my sister on that last trip, I remember now. So she could go to a park without us on one day.
Did that help?
