TOURISM : New Disney Attraction Drives Up Attendance and Overtime Work

Some Disneyland workers have been setting overtime records as the park is caught shorthanded by two years of staff reductions coupled with unexpectedly high attendance, caused by its new Indiana Jones Adventure attraction.

“We work 12 hours a day, unfortunately,” one fatigued Adventureland worker said last week while shepherding visitors through a line. Another employee racked up a 94-hour workweek last month, a source said.

In a move to reduce costs, the park over the past two years has gone through a series of layoffs and given incentives for older workers to retire. It also has shut down worker-intensive rides, such as the Skyway aerial tram, one of its Autopia tracks and a motorboat ride.

Normally, the months leading up to Easter are slow. But the opening of the Indiana Jones ride last month brought an onslaught of tourists and locals to the park before Disneyland could gear up for spring break.

Disneyland has gone on a hiring spree, running double classes through its orientation program, but the replacements did not start reducing overtime until this week.

Park officials say the heady work schedule hasn’t caused safety problems because employees are closely monitored. Disneyland policy calls for putting workers in key ride operating positions for only an hour at a time, before they are rotated to other tasks to help them stay attentive.

Disneyland, meanwhile, is profiting despite the overtime. Analysts say Disney’s theme park segment will continue its rebound, aided by cost cutting and higher attendance. Smith Barney analyst Jill Krutick expects Disney’s theme park income to rise 18% for the quarter.