When the OGs Fail
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 6:00 pm
Last night into this morning, I was a part of a set build, setting up the risers so that the press would have a great view of Meg Crofton and the stage as Fantasyland is officially opened. It's a wonderful press stage. I put myself in position to be the first person to see some views with human eyes in possibly years, as where I was there was no reason a person would have been up on a lift or anything, and I was on risers, my eyes almost 20 feet into the air at times. The retired Cast Member in me loved every moment, though I am sore today. For those who perchance to see the risers tomorrow, for your interest each 4x8' deck is 140 lbs and is moved into place by hand. For those who will not see this riser set but in the past or future see a large stage (such as the one in front of BAH for Star Wars Weekends, as we set up and tear down that stage as well, and almost all other stages that the parks use), that is what I am talking about. Each staircase that is attached to the stage is a beast and takes at least four people to lift. We get by with two per deck.
The decks are transported by a semi truck that carries them all over the country. The decks are in crates of probably 16-20 (I have never actually counted), and the crates are heavy as well on their own. All the supports and other equipment that we use come in similar cases, and each is very, very heavy.
Last night, as we were waiting for the MK to clear (with the park hours extended, despite the work that needed to happen), we took some of the supports and other non-deck equipment out of the truck and began pre-assembling different parts to make the build go much faster. Obviously, pulling the cases in and out of the truck requires the use of a fork lift, and I wound up standing on the ground on the right side of the truck where everyone else, including the forklift operator of the boom-operated forklift, was on the left. Nice big blind area, but it was a spot where no one should have been anyway.
Or so I would have thought. A Cast Member came up the side of the truck and thought nothing of the fact that we had a forklift lifting and maneuvering stuff the size of a car in the air. I had to stop her and ask her to go around some other way.
I don't find the fault with her. She has had so many OGs jammed down her throat that she doesn't have an attitude of safety; she has an attitude of following rules designed to keep her safe.
The problem is, rules do not promote safety. A safety attitude does. My high school US History/Econ instructor put it best: "If I tell you not to pee in that corner, that corner or that corner, but I forgot to tell you not to pee in this corner, what are you going to feel free to do?"
Had this girl been crushed by one of these carts perhaps falling out of the truck (as they certainly can do) or being mis-maneuvered (the guy was pretty new... I was wondering if I could do a better job just picking up the equipment and pulling levers to figure out how it worked on my own) I would not have blamed her. I also have no intention of going to the company and saying anything; they'll react by making some set of OG rules about the forklifts that are on property, instead of making sure everyone knows, "Hey. If you see a forklift being operated... Stay 50' away. We use a lot of heavy equipment backstage. So be safe and use your head around it."
Of course, this attitude that everything needs to be rule-based instead of mindset-based is the reason why Cast Members are babysat in all departments.
That is also why I have struck out on my own. Where I work now, safety is just as important and much more challenging than any attraction. I have two careers where I have peoples lives in my hands. Sure, I make sure I get a defensive driving course every so often, just as a refresher. But I also have a mindset of safety. When following the law would be dangerous to the people in my car, I will break the law every time. I know for a fact that that mindset got me a talking-to a couple times where I kept guests safe using my head instead of allowing them to get hurt and following the letter of the OGs.
I guess that is one more reason I am no longer cut out to be a Cast Member.
Those of you still in roles, please don't hear me demeaning you in any way, shape or form. I have an intense respect for you. I just don't know how you manage to stick with it, especially if you are FT.
The decks are transported by a semi truck that carries them all over the country. The decks are in crates of probably 16-20 (I have never actually counted), and the crates are heavy as well on their own. All the supports and other equipment that we use come in similar cases, and each is very, very heavy.
Last night, as we were waiting for the MK to clear (with the park hours extended, despite the work that needed to happen), we took some of the supports and other non-deck equipment out of the truck and began pre-assembling different parts to make the build go much faster. Obviously, pulling the cases in and out of the truck requires the use of a fork lift, and I wound up standing on the ground on the right side of the truck where everyone else, including the forklift operator of the boom-operated forklift, was on the left. Nice big blind area, but it was a spot where no one should have been anyway.
Or so I would have thought. A Cast Member came up the side of the truck and thought nothing of the fact that we had a forklift lifting and maneuvering stuff the size of a car in the air. I had to stop her and ask her to go around some other way.
I don't find the fault with her. She has had so many OGs jammed down her throat that she doesn't have an attitude of safety; she has an attitude of following rules designed to keep her safe.
The problem is, rules do not promote safety. A safety attitude does. My high school US History/Econ instructor put it best: "If I tell you not to pee in that corner, that corner or that corner, but I forgot to tell you not to pee in this corner, what are you going to feel free to do?"
Had this girl been crushed by one of these carts perhaps falling out of the truck (as they certainly can do) or being mis-maneuvered (the guy was pretty new... I was wondering if I could do a better job just picking up the equipment and pulling levers to figure out how it worked on my own) I would not have blamed her. I also have no intention of going to the company and saying anything; they'll react by making some set of OG rules about the forklifts that are on property, instead of making sure everyone knows, "Hey. If you see a forklift being operated... Stay 50' away. We use a lot of heavy equipment backstage. So be safe and use your head around it."
Of course, this attitude that everything needs to be rule-based instead of mindset-based is the reason why Cast Members are babysat in all departments.
That is also why I have struck out on my own. Where I work now, safety is just as important and much more challenging than any attraction. I have two careers where I have peoples lives in my hands. Sure, I make sure I get a defensive driving course every so often, just as a refresher. But I also have a mindset of safety. When following the law would be dangerous to the people in my car, I will break the law every time. I know for a fact that that mindset got me a talking-to a couple times where I kept guests safe using my head instead of allowing them to get hurt and following the letter of the OGs.
I guess that is one more reason I am no longer cut out to be a Cast Member.
Those of you still in roles, please don't hear me demeaning you in any way, shape or form. I have an intense respect for you. I just don't know how you manage to stick with it, especially if you are FT.