Summer Jobs for Youth at Disneyland

Re Bob Secter’s article (June 4) entitled “Summer Work at Disneyland Holds Little Magic for Youth of Today”:

I am the mother of two Orange County kids who worked at Disneyland in the past. Perhaps Secter should also have interviewed past and present young employees of Disneyland. He might have had a more balanced picture of Disneyland’s employment problems.

My daughter at age 21 (no spoiled O.C. kid) went to work part time for Disneyland in 1984 while she attended college. She still remembers her employment by Disneyland in a negative way and states she felt the employees’ welfare didn’t matter to most of the management. “Making money was the bottom line in employee relations.”

In the past under the old “Disney” regime, a paternalistic system existed where rigid employee rules were enforced to create a pleasant and courteous environment for patrons. “Big Brother” looked over the employees’ shoulders and wrote up the slightest infractions for breaking appearance and behavior codes. However, “Big Brother” truly cared about his kids and let them know. Paternalism works with young employees if it’s a two-way street.

Today’s Disneyland is a one-way street. The chastisements abound, but incentives (such as praise) don’t seem to exist. Employees are hired as casual temporary workers. Why would Orange County kids work for $4.75 per hour base rate (plus a small differential) from 9:45 p.m. to 2:45 a.m. per night--which includes driving the freeways alone during early morning hours--if they can get better pay and better hours from another employer?

The kids smile sweetly in their special costumes as they survive another day at Disneyland because, after all, they work for “the happiest place on earth.” Are they paid enough for the bad hours, customer hassles and little or no praise from management? Absolutely not--neither in dollars nor in humane employee relations.

Rather than aim sarcasm at Orange County’s kids who don’t want to work at Disneyland, perhaps Secter might give the kids credit for choosing to become valued employees instead of cogs in a money machine.

CAROL A. PARKER

Fullerton