Disneyland workers say they live in cars and motels due to low pay

MicroWave@lemmy.world to News@lemmy.world – 599 points –
Disneyland workers want to strike - but love the magic
bbc.com

Cynthia “Cyn” Carranza meticulously scavenged for a shady parking spot in the car she called home.

The overnight custodian at Disneyland has to sleep during the day - a difficulty for anyone, let alone when you're living in your car with two dogs. Ms Carranza says she makes $20.65 an hour (about £15.99) at the park but last summer, she couldn't afford rent in this Southern California city where the average apartment can run more than $2,000 (about £1,550) a month.

Ms Carranza, like others who work at the park, detailed to the BBC the financial hardships that come with working at what’s supposed to be the “Happiest Place on Earth”. About 10,000 union workers at Disneyland - the first of 12 parks created around the globe - are threatening to strike over the wages and what they say are retaliatory anti-union practices.

Hundreds of workers protested outside the park this week, with an array of signs and pins showing Mickey Mouse's gloved fist in defiance. 

“Mickey would want fair pay,” workers chanted outside Disneyland near the park's gates. 

They voted almost unanimously to authorise strike action on Friday, just days before union contract negotiations for workers are set to resume.

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has Biden at least visited Disneyland and talked to the workers to let them know he stands with them even though his power to fix anything is limited

he could at the very least show some solidarity to the working class that actually make the US great

I know for a fact that if he did, you would complain that he hasn't done enough because I remember what you were saying when he spoke to the UAW while they were on strike.

No one in the presidency will ever pass your purity test.

all ask out of a president is to try to stand behind the people and make speeches in times such as this like he cares maybe even go to where the issue is and talk to people

that would be an awesome leader