Members of four unions representing 14,000 workers at the Disneyland in Anaheim, California, have voted to authorize a strike amid contract negotiations.
The vote does not mean the workers will go on strike yet, but that the unions can call a strike at any point. If a strike takes place, it will be the largest strike so far in 2024.
“We have given the company more than enough time to do the right thing,” the unions, under the collective Disney Workers Rising bargaining committee, said on X after the vote.
Disney Workers Rising said that if Disney does not seem prepared to agree with the union after two more days of bargaining, “we will move forward with the actions we need to take”. The next meetings are scheduled for 22 July and 23 July.
The union covers workers at the Disneyland Resort, including Disney’s California Adventure, Downtown Disney and the Disney hotels in the area.
In a survey conducted earlier this year, the union said that 28% of its members have food insecurity, 64% are rent-burdened and 42% missed work for medical treatment because they didn’t have enough sick leave.
Workers are also advocating for higher wages. The current minimum wage under Anaheim law is $19.90.
The current contract expired on 16 June. Contract negotiations have been taking place since late April.
Workers have accused the company of “unlawful discipline and intimidation and surveillance” of union members, especially after employees were told they could not wear union buttons at work.
“We have people who work at Disneyland who have to choose between paying their rent or buying groceries. There are people who go without medical care because they can’t afford it. There are people who rely on the food banks, and the churches, or food supplements,” Coleen Palmer, a cashier at Disneyland for more than 30 years and a member of the bargaining committee, told the Guardian earlier this month. “This is a place where people want to work but they want to be able to make a living doing what they’re doing and that’s what we’re fighting for.”
In a statement, a Disneyland Resort spokesperson said that the company “greatly appreciate the important roles our cast members play in creating memorable experiences for our guests, and we remain committed to reaching an agreement that focuses on what matters most to them while positioning Disneyland Resort for growth and job creation”.
Lauren Aratani is a reporter for Guardian US
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