Guest repeatedly mistaken for cast member files claim for back pay

“I spend half my time as a guest answering other guests’ questions. I want to be underpaid just like real cast members!”

ANAHEIM, CA — Albert Amadi has never worked for Disneyland, but has filed a claim for back pay with the popular theme park.

Amadi, 38, visits the Anaheim resort frequently from his home in Palmdale, California, just about 80 miles away from the park — a short, three-day journey each way through L.A. traffic. He has lost count of the number of times he has visited Disneyland over the years, and says he “knows his way around” the park.

This, of course, makes Amadi stand out against the crowd of clueless guests wandering aimlessly from land to land and wondering how to get to “that Harry Potter place.”

Do the work, get the pay?

“I spend half my time as a guest answering other guests’ questions,” Amadi tells Uncle Walt’s Insider. “It’s gotten ridiculous. I try to help, but it can get old, especially since I’m doing it for free. I want to be underpaid just like real cast members!”

Consequently, Amadi has sent a demand letter to Disney Parks and Resorts and Spas chairman Bob Chapek explaining his situation and asking for back pay for “years and years of acting as a de facto cast member.” He has not yet received a response.

UPDATE: Just as this story went to press, Uncle Walt’s has learned that the situation has been resolved, with Amadi agreeing to being given a free map to California Adventure churro carts and a “cool, commemorative surprise” in lieu of back pay.

UPDATE #2: Now it seems actual Disneyland cast members are asking Chapek if they can exchange their meager paychecks for maps to churro carts. Uncle Walt’s will keep you posted.

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Cover photo of a random building at Disneyland by Carterhawk [CC BY-SA 3.0] via Wikimedia Commons.