Stupid Guest Tricks

abc wrote:$8.49 in attractions being here one year.

That's a penny shy of what I was making at Legoland, doing more work as a lead.

Interesting, considering how much higher the cost of living is in California that CM's aren't making that much more than Florida CM's. You'd be hard pressed to find an apartment for under $1,000 a month in Orange County, CA. At least an apartment in a neighborhood where bullets aren't constantly whizzing over your head (there are guns in the O.C.? There are gang bangers in the O.C.? Take that Aaron Spelling...:eek :)

Out of curiosity, what are the current California wage ranges (starting rate to top rate) in the usual areas: Attractions, Merchandise, Ticket Taker, Ticket Seller, Foods and ODV? I suppose anyone who knows could throw in Custodial and Guest Relations while they're at it - an onstage job is an onstage job...

Attractions, custodial, stores, ticket takers all have a very similar wage schedule and it starts out at $8.06 now with the recent cost of living raise. The 2nd year rate is $8.49, the 3rd year rate is roughly $9.45 and then it caps out in the 6th year. This is for a cr cm and i believe ct cms still make $7.40 in these depts.

Now when you see these wages it's no suprise why WDW is having trouble getting people. When I left I was making $8.49/hour with 5 years as FT. With the minimum wage in FL at $6.15 Disney isn't even paying a competitive wage anymore.

I make 11.21 as an attractions host reached top of the payscale now I only get the 3% every march 16th

After 6 years in stores as merch. hostess, making $10.43/hour. Got pretty good raises first 5 years (started as CT @ $6.00/hour). Now just 3% cost of living yearly.

How much could you make doing silhouettes, caricatures, or portraits?

One of my classmates in 3-D Art was a pastel artist, both at Disneyland and Knotts. I want to say Knotts was paying him $11.00 per hour - can't remember for sure. Gotta pay for art school somehow..., right Stduck? By the way, that AH424 final was miserable - that's the worst I've sweated a final in years...how did you do?

BirdMom wrote:One of my classmates in 3-D Art was a pastel artist, both at Disneyland and Knotts. I want to say Knotts was paying him $11.00 per hour - can't remember for sure. Gotta pay for art school somehow..., right Stduck? By the way, that AH424 final was miserable - that's the worst I've sweated a final in years...how did you do?

I think I did ok. Not Great but ok.

It wasn't bad. As for artists in the park I considered it but I didn't want to turn my joy into work. I know Legoland and Knotts artists are from an outside company. I don't know what Disneyland does. Also sometimes those jobs are on commission.

Stduck wrote:It wasn't bad. As for artists in the park I considered it but I didn't want to turn my joy into work. I know Legoland and Knotts artists are from an outside company. I don't know what Disneyland does. Also sometimes those jobs are on commission.

Chris said that the vendor was the same company that had the parasol stand outside the Pirates exit. I want to say Arribas Brothers, but I could swear they are the glass blowers.

I know what you mean about turning your joy into your work. For Chris it was a matter of keeping in daily practice outside school assignments, and if I remember correctly, he was looking to go into animation or designing new graphic novel characters - he used to come up with the most outrageous stuff off the cuff, could draw anything from any angle. I remember the life-drawing professor mentioning to someone that she had him draw the model's pose from a direct overhead angle just because he already had more than a working knowledge of human anatomy. I changed my major from Theater Arts (technical - costuming) to Art because it was taking the fun out of sewing for me. Along with the fact that whether it was theater or fashion, it was never going to be my final vision, but that of a director or an anonymous marketplace. Joyful work, what a concept - ever wonder what happens to the pixiedust ten years down the road??? Disneyland doesn't pay enough to keep that kind of perk in someone's attitude after years of being beaten up and recieving pointless complaints just because guests want to be jerks.