Disappointed in Recent CM Interactions / Observations

[livndisney]

If snow white was filling up her honda, I would think you had something here. You should scrap book one of those People Magazine "They're just like us" pages!!

We have not seen Snow White (but other face characters-not in costume). It is funny when they recognize you and then you realize who they are LOL

 

[MinnieKitty]

I don't want to harp on you, because several other people here have already touched on the things I would have, but two things:

1. I used to be a CM at MK, and there was an instance where I was assisting a family with a disabled son. The mother had just ran in the WDW marathon to raise money on her son's behalf. We struck up a conversation and she mentioned that her son was in love with Pooh, but they were unable to get an ADR at Crystal Palace because it was such a busy weekend, with the marathon and all. I knew if I made a few calls, I might have better luck than her, as just another guest trying to get a table at a booked restaurant. I called several different numbers, several different times, and could not get anyone over there to answer. I was NOT about to tell that mother, "Sorry, they won't pick up the phone, so you and your son are out of luck." So I, in my Fantasyland attire, walked with that family all the way up to Crystal Palace and personally saw to it that they got a table and that little boy got to meet Pooh. Several guests made rude remarks at me during my trek there and back, but I didn't let it get to me because I knew I did the right thing.

2. There was another instance where I was called to come pick up my then 3 year old DD because she had a fever and signs of a stomach virus. My DH was in the military, so I was all on my own at that time, and had to leave work right away to pick her up and take her to the doctor. After I picked her up from daycare, she was telling me how extremely thirsty she was, so I stopped at a gas station (in my full Fantasyland attire - can't remember if I removed my name tag or not, my mind was clearly on other things at that time) and got her some bottled water. While I was there, I filled my car up with gas, because her Pediatrician was about 45 mins away from WDW.

Sorry to write a book, but I'm just trying to help give you perspective. Cast members are real people, too. We have emergencies. And sometimes, we are in the wrong part of the park because we are putting ourselves out to help a guest. Sorry your trip didn't live up to your expectations, but perhaps lowering them a bit will help your next trip not seem so disappointing.

 

[DisneyGirl421]

MK is the only park that has utilidors, so having CMs walking around the parks with bags and such is just something we have to do. And if we are on stage in costume, we HAVE to have our nametag on, even if we are not even on the clock yet. (I don't know how many times I've been stopped going to and from my work location before/after I had clocked in)
Also, the gas station thing? I'm guilty of that so many times. Gas on property is actually cheaper than gas by where I live, so I get it after work. And most of the time, I'm still in costume, and sometimes I forget to take my name tag off.

The CMs you saw sprinting? Probably were college program CPs trying to catch their bus. (otherwise they'd have to wait for 30ish minutes or so for the next one).

 

[Jex]

On my way to check into our resort today I stopped at a Hess station and had a great conversation with a CM, yes he had his nametag on, and I'm glad he did, now if I see him at MK I will remember to say hello since I am bad with faces, but will recall him when I see the nametag.

Are you being serious with this thread?

Also saw a huge gator turning onto world drive I think it was right in the grass by the side of the road, did not notice if he had a nametag on though.

 

[POOHsie]

I'm not upset that CM's were taking breaks. It was just my understanding that if CM's were off duty, they're supposed to at least remove their name badge. It's the whole onstage vs. offstage thing that was in line with Walt's ideals (building utilidors on the 1st floor of the MK to avoid those CM's that work in Adventureland from strolling through Tomorrowland......) that seem to be slipping.

Walt Disney died in 1966, before Magic Kingdom was designed or the land completely bought. So I question if he had any idea of Utilidors, or ideals about its usage.

My observations at MK are that CMs head for a backstage exit when going off duty. I don't know what CM protocol is at the other parks regarding appearance in public areas. And frankly, I'm busy enjoying the parks. Some one else gets paid to oversee the CMs.

Possibly OP never wore ID fastened to clothing, and doesn't realize how easy it is to forget you're wearing it, on occasion, before/after work. The name tag wearing when off duty is probably an infraction but hardly in the realm of violating high-falutin' ideals. And what's an ideal, anyway? It's someone's concept of perfection, and not completely attainable when dealing with a work force of 60,000 people. "Walt's Ideals" as OP named it, shouldn't be thought of as a way to collect demerits against CMs who work hard in the face of thousands of strangers per day, of all personalities -- pleasant and awful -- and for little pay. I praise the Disney CMs for the magic they bring to WDW, and I forgive them being people underneath their costumes.

 

[ttintagel]

A couple of those things are bad show, but I see most of them as management's responsibility. They should be providing adequate offstage break areas for CM's, and if they'd probably still be collecting costumes at the end of shifts instead of sending them home with CM's if they didn't want to pass on laundry costs to the workers.

However, I totally agree that CM's should be changing out of their costumes when they go offstage, even if they're taking the costume home with them, just like members of any other show would.

These things tend to trickle down from the top.

 

[LiveYourLife]

Good evening, everyone. We spent a wonderful week at the world from September 14 through 21. Of course, we had an amazing time as we always do. There was one reoccurring theme however that did leave a sore spot....hang on while I get my flame suit on.

Ok, here goes, y'all. This is a rant, and I will be letting WDW know about this, don't you worry.

We had some very disappointing observations of CM's this trip. These caught me off-guard because never have we ever seen CM's act or appear in this manner, and I much prefer the way it used to be.

1- At the BWV in the front of the parking lot by the villas, there was a CM (in full attire and name badge) smoking, and trying to hide behind a tree. He was unsuccessful because I saw him in plain view.

2- At the Hess station across the street from the BWV, a CM was in her full attire and name badge, pumping gas into her van.

3- One of the CM's at guest relations at EPCOT was incredibly rude and sighing/rolling his eyes (never did see a smile from him) to each person he helped.... AND he was training a new CM that was 'earning her ears'. What a great role model..... at least SHE was friendly!!

4- Around World Showcase, we spotted 2 CM's (in a 5 minute time span) wearing full attire and name badge IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY THAN THEIR OWN.

5- In the MK, we spotted 3 CM's, all in different lands, in full attire and name badges walking to take a break backstage with their lunch bags, being fully onstage physically, but mentally checked out.

6- There were 2 CM's in full attire and name badges (that worked in one of the Agent P areas) SPRINTING through the crowd around World Showcase after Illuminations, waving at guests and saying "have a magical night! have a magical night!" I thought it was weird that they were running through the crowd....

7- While in line for Kilimanjaro Safari, a CM asked if we were a party of 2 (and we were) and told us to join row 2 with another family (a mom and two small children). We boarded the safari vehicle with this other family, and then another CM yelled at us and told us to get off because we weren't with the family we were sitting with and were supposed to wait for the next vehicle.

8- A CM on PotC was rolling her eyes and acting like she wanted to be anywhere else but there.

9- A CM on CoP was just staring people down as they walked into the theater. We smiled and said "good morning" and she just looked at us. Ok then.

So, there's that. Don't get me wrong, we had some awesome interactions with a few CM's, but it seems like this is the first time we have ever noticed SO many CM's not following Walt's ideals. Is there different training going on? I also should note, NONE of the CM's I mentioned above were "earning their ears" (other than the cheery girl being trained by the grumpy guy in the Epcot guest relations.)

 

[ethanwa]

This post is really picky. I don't like it.

You need to remember, CM's are real people who get paid crap money to do the same thing every day OVER AND OVER.

I'm thankful that most of them are happy and cheerful. It's better than any other place in the world with customer service.

 

[minnie mum]

This post is really picky. I don't like it.

You need to remember, CM's are real people who get paid crap money to do the same thing every day OVER AND OVER.

I'm thankful that most of them are happy and cheerful. It's better than any other place in the world with customer service.

Well said. Since the OP obviously has a thing about people rolling their eyes, it's a good thing she couldn't see me as I was reading her post.

 

[3kidsdad]

While I was going to type a direct quote from my wife who is a cast member at AK, I was reminded of what my mother taught me, if you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all.

 

[BonnieA]

wow, just wow. CM's are people just like the rest of us.

 

[siskaren]

Walt Disney died in 1966, before Magic Kingdom was designed or the land completely bought. So I question if he had any idea of Utilidors, or ideals about its usage.

Well, there is a well-known story about Walt being in Disneyland one day and being bothered by the sight of a CM in a sheriff costume walking through Fantasyland, which he had to do to get from the backstage area to Frontierland, so that was probably what lead to the Magic Kingdom being built above ground (the Utilidors are actually at ground level).

 

[Leighbra]

Sometimes I think we see what we want to see.

I would personally let these particular things go. I'd be afraid they thought I was emailing them to get something out of them & would feel pretty bad if they refunded me anything, or God forbid, punished one of the CMs for the things you've listed.

While I was going to type a direct quote from my wife who is a cast member at AK, I was reminded of what my mother taught me, if you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all.

Thumper?!

 

[DisneyAsh21]

I'm basically just echoing what most of the other posters have already said. Everyone has an off day and we are all people.
Also, most of my amazing stories of guest interaction are from Disney. This is the place where they will go beyond to help a guest with allergies eat ice cream for the first time in a long time, to help make a child's dream come true (whether they are 5 or 50), and to help put on a show every day that helps you escape from the every day world into a magical place. And I don't expect it to be perfect so if I saw someone in Adventureland from Fantasyland I wouldn't really think twice about it because it wouldn't ruin the magic for me.
And to the CM who took the family to crystal palace, that is what Disney is to me. You put in more effort to create a magical moment for a guest.
I hope you still had an enjoyable trip.

 

[wilkeliza]

Shedding some light 6 is because the Agent P CMs are not off after they wave good bye to people from the fountain. The 2 you saw have 10-15ish minutes to get from the fountain back to the trailer where their equipment is kept, drop off the ropes they had for Illuminations viewing and then pick up the equipment needed to clear the park and then get back to the American Adventure. If they are slow at any point in the task they get stopped between China and the Outpost because the bridge goes up to remove the barges. If they miss that bridge then they miss their last break and will work 4 hours sometimes more straight with no break which is against the rules. The CMs were telling you have a good night etc it wasn't like they ran into anyone or weren't acknowledging that there were guests they just knew they were on a tight time budget.

 

[Missy29]

I know how you feel, I was in line for McDonalds the other day and the person behind me was in their Burger King uniform, name tag and all! My day was ruined!

 

[jnoble82]

Well, there is a well-known story about Walt being in Disneyland one day and being bothered by the sight of a CM in a sheriff costume walking through Fantasyland, which he had to do to get from the backstage area to Frontierland, so that was probably what lead to the Magic Kingdom being built above ground (the Utilidors are actually at ground level).

While I'm sure it bothered Walt (and yes it is his world/land so what he wants to see should be near the top), I am willing to bet MOST people will not notice such things out of place. Characters, I could understand more than your average CM. (Though if I saw Ariel hanging out with Donald I would probably be excited.)

 

[1000HappyWishes]

Cast Members are allowed to have bad days every once in a while.

 

[mikedoyleblogger]

I have a lot of sympathy for OP. I said similar, honest things about substandard CM interactions on my blog and got flamed by the CM community. People here in this thread have ridiculed OP as if it couldn't be possible that their CM interactions really were unmagical and negatively colored their visit to a degree. It's like telling someone, "How dare you not love WDW in the exact same way that I do" and it isn't fair. It is definitely possible to have a dozen rotten CM interactions in the World, and it's also definitely possible for those interactions to hurt the magical feeling of your visit. And no one has the right to tell anyone not to talk about negative experiences at WDW. I highly doubt OP is nitpicky or lying or has an axe to grind. How insulting some of the comments have been here.

 

[TreeSapp]

One thing to always bear in mind about a handful of less-than-pristine CM experiences, is just how many CMs you see in a day!

DH and I estimate it's in the high hundreds to low thousands even if we stay at one park. He's always shocked at the number of people who "come out of the woodwork" for the parade set up/take down. I get overly giddy about hoping to catch one of the employee buses dropping off at the parks. It's fun to walk behind all the costume employees on your way in But boy do they move with a purpose! I imagine, like any job, being late because you stopped to chat is frowned upon

When you realize you've seen a dozen or fewer less-than-ideal workers out of thousands on a multi-day trip... Just try going to any fast food, restaurant and shopping center. You're almost always guaranteed at least one "off" employee and they only hire dozen at a time. Not to say one truly bad experience can't ruin a few hours of your trip, but just think back to your first job. So many of us worked hourly, often minimum wage, customer service-style jobs, we know what the level of expectation is/was and how hard it is to be on your A-game 100% of the time.