Union Election for 1,700 Disney Character & Parade Performers to Take Place This Month

A union election will take place on-site at Disneyland May 15-18 for Disney Cast Members who perform as characters or in parades at Disneyland, California Adventure and Disney-owned and operated hotels in Anaheim.

Last month, on April 17, a supermajority of the 1,700 people who bring Disney characters to life at the Disneyland Resort's parades, meet-and-greets and character dining experiences filed for an election with the NLRB seeking union recognition with Actors' Equity Association as their bargaining agent. The Cast Members who signed union authorization cards, who serve as performers, hosts, leads and trainers, believe that their lives – as well as the Guest experience at Disneyland – can be improved through collective bargaining with their employer, The Walt Disney Company.

Most of the Disneyland workforce is already unionized, with those working in the Characters and Parades departments being a notable exception – particularly notable given that their colleagues doing the same work in Florida at Walt Disney World have been unionized for decades.

Voting in the union election will take place on-site at Disneyland on Wed. May 15, Thurs. May 16, and Sat., May 18. Each day, eligible voters will cast ballots at three designated voting locations. Cast Members attached to either the resort's Characters or Parades departments are assigned to a particular voting location based on their first scheduled shift for the week.

Final election results are expected during the evening of Sat., May 18. Members of the media are barred from voting locations; however union activists are available for interview during the election period. Details on how the election results will be announced will follow in a later advisory.

On April 17, when the petition for a union election was filed with the NLRB, Actors' Equity Association President Kate Shindle said, “Our goal is to make ‘the happiest place on Earth' a little happier. Equity has a very good relationship with Disney. We negotiate with them at Walt Disney World in Orlando, and with Disney Theatricals on Broadway and national tours. We look forward to meeting with their representatives across the bargaining table, and together, making the Disneyland Resort a fairer and safer place to work.”

The Disneyland Resort, which includes Disneyland Park and Disney's California Adventure as well as three hotels and Downtown Disney, opened in 1955 and has become one of the most attended themed entertainment attractions in the world.