How much does Disney pay the CMs?

[princess jackson]

Hi i was talking to a CM in ENGLAND EPCOT, she said she was on minimum wage and had to share accomodation, and told me to look at WWW.YUMMYJOBS.COM.

This is an international program i think, have a look.

 

[Mymatisse]

For those considering getting a job as a CM, my sister recently got a job as a CM. She wanted to work full time, but they told her they could only start her as part time. She is only working a couple of days a week. Each week her schedule is different. Sometimes she works during the day. Sometimes she works at night. Her take home pay so far has amounted to a little over $100 a week after taxes. They said they will try to increase her hours when summer gets here and crowds get heavier. It seems it is difficult to walk into a full time position unless you are salaried.

Not that it makes it any better but I was under the impression that Florida didn't have any income tax. There can't be that many "taxes" taken out can there?

 

[Sk8Leigh]

Well the insinuation was that is all they are "worth"..and I dont think that is right or 'fair'

It's not "worth" as in your worth as a person, but it is your worth as an employee. If someone is unskilled, they can only do jobs that don't take any skills or minimal training (custodial work, taking tickets, etc.), and are fairly easily replacable by Disney by just about anyone willing to work for equal or less pay. If someone is skilled, is an engineer or IT professional or the like, then they've taken time and money to earn those skills, are more valuable to Disney (they can design rides or FastPass or whatever), and are more difficult to replace. Therefore they earn more money.

It's not about they're a more worthy person, but rather that they have more to offer Disney and there are fewer of them around.

As to the issue of some people not being capable of getting those skills for whatever reason and thus not being able to get those jobs...well, life just isn't fair. But it's not Disney's (or any other company's) fault.

 

[crisi]

Fair market value means nothing. Its what the companies come up with to justify their cheapness. I never said it was just a Disney problem. Its all over. This thread just happened to be about Disney. I happen to think that there are many jobs that are very underpaid for what they do.

Its very sickening to see all these companies making big bucks and paying their CEOs and higher ups big bucks and bonuses etc and the ones who are out there busting their butts to make the company money dont get paid much.

Just exactly who came up with these so called fair market value numbers? I can say that I happen to think that waiters and waitresses deserve to make $10 an hour. That is fair to me. You are naive if you think that it isnt the companies who have come up with this junk in order to justify making even more money by paying certain employees less. No one wants to be the one who decides to start paying 'their' employees more and they hope no one else will either..

Is a dishwasher any less valuable to a company then the manager is? Are ticket sellers at Disney any less valuable then the store managers?

Again I know this is useless because you are very closed minded

You know an awful lot about me.......Mom? is that you?

Yes, a dishwasher is less valuable than the manager. If I hire a good manager, he may increase my profits by $10,000. He may therefore be worth much more money than an OK manager who will hold my profits steady. An inept manager may lose me business and I'll fire him. If I hire a good dishwasher he'll break less dishes than an average dishwasher saving me $150 a year. If I hire an inept dishwasher he'll leave food on the plates and I'll have to fire him. A manager simply has more opportunities to help me make (and lose) money than a dishwasher does, and gets paid accordingly.

If I hire A-Rod to play shortstop for me at $25 mil a year, I do that because I think he will add at least $25 mil a year to my bottom line - by winning more games, increasing attendance, earning me a profit. (He didn't, won't and that was a stupid business decision, but I don't own a baseball team). I can also choose to hire a shortstop straight out of college named Joe Smith and pay him $150,000 (or whatever the ridiculous major league minimum is nowadays) - but I may not expect to win that pennant, increase attendence, or get big TV contracts with Joe Smith playing shortstop.

Is this fair? Well, I don't get paid $25 million dollars a year for playing ball, but its been the most effective economic system ever tried.

 

[GoofyBanker]

Since when in life has anything been fair? Is it fair to pay a teacher the low wages most of them make? I mean they are only taking care of our most valuable possessions!!! Life is not fair and certainly corporate america is not fair! I have been a banker for over 20 years, and have only made what I consider "good" money for the last 7 or 8 years. I don't work any harder now than I did in my early "peon" years, actually work less! But I am a income producer for the bank and they pay much better for that than what they will ever pay a poor teller who works harder than I ever will. That's corporate america, not fair just LIFE!

 

[Aidensmom]

Not that it makes it any better but I was under the impression that Florida didn't have any income tax. There can't be that many "taxes" taken out can there?

Florida employees still pay federal taxes, social security, and medicare, just like anyone else. Then we pay sales tax to the state, and in most cases, to the county on almost everything we buy. And until this year, we got no federal tax breaks on the sales tax, so we paid more federal tax than states with an income tax.

 

[HayGan]

Florida employees still pay federal taxes, social security, and medicare, just like anyone else. Then we pay sales tax to the state, and in most cases, to the county on almost everything we buy. And until this year, we got no federal tax breaks on the sales tax, so we paid more federal tax than states with an income tax.

I live in PA and addition to federal taxes, social security, and medicare. I also pay a state income and local income tax. I also pay sales tax (7%) except food and clothing. What kind of federal tax break do you get on sales tax? How would you pay more than others in federal income tax (just a question because I don't really know )

 

[Aidensmom]

I live in PA and addition to federal taxes, social security, and medicare. I also pay a state income and local income tax. I also pay sales tax (7%) except food and clothing. What kind of federal tax break do you get on sales tax? How would you pay more than others in federal income tax (just a question because I don't really know )

State income tax can be used as a deduction on your federal income taxes, so if you have state income tax, you pay less federal taxes after the deduction than someone who does not have state income tax. Beginning for 2004 taxes, sales tax paid can be deducted in lieu of state income tax, but it was never deductible before. You can actually keep track of the sales tax paid all year, or you can use the calculation provided by the IRS. If you have both income tax and sales tax, you have to choose which one to use as a deduction, you cannot use both. Some states only have income tax, some states both income and sales, and some states (like Florida) only have sales tax.

I was just trying to say that just because we don't have state income tax does not mean we don't have taxes taken out of our checks - over 20% of my paycheck goes to taxes.

 

[TSR6]

Not that it makes it any better but I was under the impression that Florida didn't have any income tax. There can't be that many "taxes" taken out can there?

...and if your going to be there for under 6months, there is some "resorts" tax too.

 

[scanmom]

this is an interesting thread. Here is my take on the whole CM wages debate. They don't get paid alot, and it would be harder to make a living on that lower wage. I work in a hospital and yes, we are ALWAYS nice, compassionate and smiling to the customer. This is not just the patient, but the patients family and friends as well. These are people who are ill and alot of times cranky as well. The families are often verbally abusive and very demanding. We also have to deal with doctors wanting their patients taken care of 1st....and try explaining to an irrational Dr. that not everyone can be 1st. I take call and have to get up at ALL hours of the night, drive to work, care for the patients, and be happy and sweet and always nice about it. When I am out at work all night, I still have to go to work in the morning, and still be super nice to everyone, even if I have had only a few hours sleep. I also have to make sure that I am VERY attentive to the job I am doing, as lives depend on it.Yes, I do get paid much more than a Disney CM, but I paid my dues, went to college, and got the education neccessay to do my job. I also have to become registered in my specialty areas, which amounts to taking 8 tests (2-3 hrs each) at $200.00 per test, and that comes out of MY pocket. Plus keep Continuing Ed points up every year. And I won't even get into the cost of college, which for me meant ALOT of student loans.
Why do I do it....not the money. I have a desire to help people and to try to make this world a better place. I want to be a part of a team that saves lives and makes a difference in all the lives we touch. I want to be the one to tell the expectant mother that she is having a boy/girl/twins. I want to help an ailing patient understand the images that show just what it is in their body that is making them feel so ill. And I want to tell them how we will make them feel well again. I have laughed and cried with my patients and I am a better person and mother for all of these experiences. I think that working at Disney affords alot of these same types of opportunities. I think that working at Disney, or really anywhere for that matter, can be a beautiful experience if you try to make it the best you can.
I don't know if I could make ends meet as a Disney CM, but I do know that the benefit of making people happy during their vacation would really make me happy too....and that is worth alot.

 

[DianeV]

Of course you work in a hospital...do you think they (the hospital) make as much money as the Disney corporation? MY point anyway is big corporations that ARE making alot of money can afford to pay their employees better or at least give them some incentives or something to show their appreciation--unfortunately many (including Disney) dont

 

[NotUrsula]

In just about every industry and profession, there is a small cadre of employers, or even just a single employer, that is considered THE prestigious place to work; the one that will make your resume shine like a shimmering star in the career firmament. I'm a librarian, and in my world, that place is the Library of Congress. The pay there stinks, and new hires fresh out of grad school commonly live way out in the VA or MD suburbs and split 2 bdr. apts. with 3 other people. Still they get thousands and thousands of applications for every job that opens. Why? Because working there is so special to a person in this profession that we will practically pay them for the privilege.

In the hospitality and film industries, Disney has that cachet. They are well aware of it, and of course they use it to their advantage: it means that they can easily get good people without having to spend a lot to get them. What those people are getting in return is the privilege of being able to say that they work there, and the resume cachet that having worked there will bring to the rest of their careers.

 

[crisi]

DianeV, where is "all this money?" The following numbers are from Reuters Finance:

Last year Disney paid a return to investors of between 4-5%. That isn't a great return (its one of the reasons Eisner is leaving). Without investors, there is no capital. Without capital, there are no theme parks.

Disney's profit margin on operations is 8%. Personally, I wouldn't call that "making a lot of money" since I can get a 6% CD without having to lift a finger.

Disney has 130,000 employees. Eisner and his buds made $18.8M last year (excluding options). If you took away exec compensation and passed it out to all the employees evenly, everyone would get a $150 a year raise! (I agree they get paid too much. I also think you need executives who will inspire Wall Street and employees, as well as set long term strategic direction - and they don't come cheap - the dishwasher probably doesn't have the skill set). They do get significantly more in options - but options are freebies - they are no risk profit. For instance, if my company gives me 100 options at $20 and the stock goes to $25, I can buy the stock at $20 and turn it around at $25 and make $500. It isn't a bad deal by any means, but it isn't that they are giving me $2500. I like stock options as a motivator (even better than ESPPs and profit sharing), I think they are disproportionally given to execs. They are also a real pain at tax time and I'd wager most park employees would find the value of a small number of options not worth the filing headache.

Disney does put a lot of their profits into "plowback." i.e. they spend them to open Mission:Space or buy ABC (IIRC, that was leveraged).

 

[imatoad]

Please everyone, no offense, but get your head out of the sand. All resort work pays the same as Disney. I've worked at ski resorts in both Colorado and Idaho, with living costs of astronomical proportions, and they pay no more than Disney. I live in a beach resort town that has an exorbitent cost of living, and the jobs here start at $7/hr. This idea that Disney is treating their empolyees differently than other vacations resorts is absurd, well, actually they might be treating them better, even if not through wages. Yes, it would be nice if large companies would pay their employees better as profits increase, but it won't happen. I've also worked in 4 different casino's in Atlantic City, and the pay rate is on par with Disney. In fact, while other industries had tremendous loss post 9/11, Atlantic City has seen profit growth, but no increase in wages. This is what corporations do, yeah, it stinks, but it is the reality of the business world, the entire business world, not just Disney.

 

[DianeV]

crisi
Sorry to inform you but Eisner is leaving because he has pretty much been forced out...but dont worry he made sure the next guy is a clone of him

You are very misinformed if you think Disney is not making alot of money

 

[WDSearcher]

Of course you work in a hospital...do you think they (the hospital) make as much money as the Disney corporation? MY point anyway is big corporations that ARE making alot of money can afford to pay their employees better or at least give them some incentives or something to show their appreciation--unfortunately many (including Disney) dont

Not true. Disney CMs get free park admissions for themselves and their family and friends, discounts on resorts (at Disney and elsewhere), discounts on merchandise (at Disney and elsewhere), additional free passes throughout the year, and other "incentives or something." Just because those incentives aren't what you would consider valuable doesn't mean that they aren't worth it to many, many people who work here. Disney CMs get a lot of perks -- everything from cut-rate movie tickets to huge deals on clearance merchandise to deals on apartments and homes to free Disney tickets. Those are huge incentives for a lot of people.

 

[crisi]

DianeV,

Please inform me. I have the annual reports and have been looking at internet research for my data. Can you please inform me? Because I know their profit margin (filed with the SEC and audited) is 8%. I know that they provided a 4-5% dividend on investments last year. I know that Eisner made $8M (and change) in non-stock compensation last year. Is there data I'm missing? Please cite and explain, I'm eager to learn. Please run some numbers explaining how Disney can pay theme park workers $10 an hour and stay in business.

Yes, that's what I said, Eisner is leaving - one of the reasons the stockholders are forcing him out is because they want better returns on their money. (Don't fool yourself, institutional investors own most of the stock - they care only about "magic" as much as it translates into "money.")

 

[WDSearcher]

You are very misinformed if you think Disney is not making alot of money

Well ... why not give us some numbers to prove that? You're telling everyone else how misinformed they are, but aren't giving any back-up.

 

[DianeV]

Eisner is flat out leaving because people are sick of him and how he is running the company. They are tired of his attitude and that includes Roy Disney.

I'm sure $$ come into play somewhere as well however the majority are tired of the decisions he makes that make the Disney corporation look bad

And you can tell me until you are red in the face that Disney isnt making much money and I will never believe that for a minute

 

[DianeV]

Who needs these so called numbers? Do you really expect anyone to believe that a corporation like Disney is not making money? That sounds like the kind of sob story most companies give around contract time!