Disneyland, Union Reach Tentative Pact : Labor: The agreement likely ends the threat of a strike. Food service workers are to vote on the offer today.
Negotiators for Disneyland and the union that represents 1,600 food service workers reached a tentative agreement late Saturday, likely ending the threat of a strike this week.
“It’s a good package, there’s no takeaways,” said Angela Keefe, president of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Local 681. “I feel great. I just need a little sleep.”
Officials at Disneyland and Local 681 concluded talks at 10:30 p.m. Saturday after meeting nearly continuously since Friday afternoon.
Disneyland’s three-year contract with Local 681 expires at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. But the deadline for hammering out a settlement was early today, when union members are scheduled to vote on the tentative three-year agreement.
Keefe said the union’s 18-member bargaining committee unanimously agreed to recommend approval of the proposal to its members.
The union was successful in blocking the company’s attempt to create a two-tier wage structure and also obtained a concession that will prohibit the company from subcontracting with non-union workers, Keefe said. The two issues had held up the talks.
The two sides, which have been meeting since early September, had planned to conclude talks late Friday but were unable to reach a deal until late Saturday.
Disneyland officials have declined to comment about negotiations. Company spokesmen could not be reached Saturday.
According to the union, Disneyland was proposing that wages for new employees hired after Nov. 1 be capped at $7.50 an hour. Currently, the top rate for most of the union food-service workers at Disneyland is about $9 an hour.
The union was also seeking to obtain contract language that would prohibit Disneyland from subcontracting, an issue that emerged this summer when the company took steps to farm out some union jobs to an outside vendor.
After protests from the union, Disneyland halted its plan but said it had been considering subcontracting in the future.
Disneyland’s contract with Local 681 covers about 700 full- and part-time workers who prepare, serve and ring up food, and bus tables at the theme park.
An additional 900 so-called “casual employees”--those who work fewer than 20 hours a week--are also governed by the pact.
The union workers represent nearly 20% of Disneyland’s work force. A strike by them could seriously hamper operations at the park, which is coming off a weak summer.
Union workers are scheduled to vote at 10 a.m., 4 and 7:30 p.m. at the Grand Hotel, across the street from Disneyland. Ballots will be counted after the last voting session.
