Niles: What’s the hot button issue dividing Disneyland and employees?

Emotions are heating up as Disneyland and its labor unions negotiate a new contract for thousands of resort employees. A deal with Disneyland workers already has expired, while ones for Disney California Adventure and Downtown Disney workers expire in September.

Union leaders have called for a strike authorization vote, and each side is pushing back on claims made by the other. There’s a wisecrack in my beloved IndyCar that if you’ve never hit the wall, you’re not driving fast enough. The only way you can keep the other side happy in a labor negotiation is to leave money on the table, and no one wants to do that.

Nor should they. That said, a lot of the economic hardship that many Disneyland Resort employees face these days is not Disney’s fault. But it is easier for workers and their unions to negotiate a deal with Disney for better pay than it is to organize the political movement necessary to change tax laws and development rules to solve the nation’s housing crisis.

As negotiations continue, one of the hot-button issues separating Disney and the unions has been, well, buttons. The unions have charged Disney with unfair labor practices for admonishing employees for wearing pro-union buttons on the job.

Wearing a button might not seem like much, but I can’t think of an issue that better illustrates the unique relationship between Disneyland and its employees. Disneyland drives Anaheim’s economy because it is not just a collection of stores, restaurants and rides. It is a creative work — a story brought to life — and it works only if Disney controls the narrative its cast members tell.

This is not about shielding Disneyland guests from the outside world. Like all enduring creative works, Disneyland comments on the world around it. Changing Splash Mountain to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is social commentary by Disney. Heck, setting that new attraction in the “employee-owned” Tiana’s Foods co-op is a pro-labor social comment by Disney’s Imagineers. So messages about labor relations clearly are not out of bounds for Disneyland.

But such commentary needs to be part of a well-designed show. If Disneyland becomes a cacophony of off-theme messages, the destination loses much of its appeal — and eventually, its income. That is not in anyone’s best interest, including Disneyland employees.

Disney calls its employees “cast members” because they’re the talent who make this show work. That show works best when its cast members can afford to stick around long enough to develop the experience that make theme park operations flow efficiently. Disneyland loses that talent and experience when employees cannot afford to stay. If Disneyland wants to continue to be an employer of choice in Orange County, it needs to raise its pay enough to maintain that position, even as the local cost of living soars.

In a perfect world, labor buttons would appear only off-stage, and Disneyland employees would be making enough money that there would be no need for them anywhere.

A public negotiation can be ugly to watch. But I am looking forwarding to seeing Disneyland management and its unions together soon in Victory Lane, celebrating a big, well-earned pay raise for the resort’s employees.