{SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW.}

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

{If the question is "how are you?", my answer is ..}

To all whom are asking me how I am, I am not fine. For the first time, since coming to Orlando, FL, I certainly am not enjoying myself. Yesterday, I had three things to be happy about, but certainly not today. “Today”, I was in pure suffering. The reason why I choose to inform you, regardless of who you are, is because I truly believe that you are concerned over my well being. Whether real action will be taken later, I have no idea. I do hope though that some authority could tell my manager/s to realign my job scope.

Let me start with a bit of history about my job. I work at Captain Cooks. It was under rehab and while it was being decorated, Captain Cooks operated under a location called Tangaroa Terrace. Far away from the main building, we seldom had many guests being able to locate the area. In addition, when I arrived, it was in the months of September, when school had started, and there were certainly much less people. Not forgetting the hot and sunny Florida’s weather beating on everyone, September through October wasn’t that very popular with guests.

Soon, every manager got excited, as the renovations were almost complete. They remarked that it was bigger than the previous Captain Cooks at that location was. But certainly, I realized after being in there that they did not take a few issues into consideration. So, on November 20 2006, Captain Cooks relocated back into the main building. We were badly hit by the sudden rush of guests who had come in for Thanksgiving (the busiest day of the park). We were hit because we are the only quick service food and beverage location in the Polynesian Resort. Hit again because it was a big hoo-ha to all the managers everywhere.

But, is it really such a marvelous and wonderful place? Seriously, I have yet to find one co-worker who loves that place. For all the College Program students, we so love our old Captain Cooks at Tangaroa Terrace. For all the cast members who originally were at the old Captain Cooks at the main building, they love our Tangaroa Terrace too.

According to what I study about how Disney conducts its business, it looks at three factors: Guest Satisfaction, Cast Member Excellence and Business Results before making a decision. Let’s analyze our new Captain Cooks. Indeed, it raises Guest Satisfaction, I never had someone complain about walking more, I never had someone complain about waiting for food, I never had someone complain about not having enough Cast Members to greet them. Business results are evident as the breaker (the person giving the various cast members breaks) earned at least $900 in cash at the end of the day. It is so nice and sweet to our guest and business results. In the contrary, cast member excellence is a zero. Zero means nothing has been going well for most of the cast members working in the location.

Let me elaborate on why I say there has been zero things going well. We stepped into Captain Cooks when it was 90% complete, and we commented lots of things, which could not be helped by that time. All the following are personal feelings, and may differ from person to person.

Firstly, there are too many greeters and not enough people actually running the flow of the business. Picture Mike (the cast member who designed the new Guest Operating Terminals), Ellen (the line manager for food and beverage), Mandy (the executive manager for food and beverage) – at times, three managers, and an official greeter (cast member of Captain Cooks); all saying “aloha” to guests and showing them through the system.

Now see, there are two cashiers. There are at least two ambassadors who clean tables and clear trays. There is one expeditor who arranges the food and hands them to the guest. There is one stocker who stocks the walk-in cooler which is a freezer, and takes the stock far away in the main stockroom, shared by all the food and beverage team. We should have one breaker too. Basically, that should be our cast member line up for the day.

So, after the food has been cooked, the expeditor places chips onto the food, arranges which food goes on which order, pages for the guests to collect their food, hands them their food, and collects the pager that was used to page the guest. Is that a lot of roles? It surely is. And because of some chef telling my manager I was slow, I have been “forbidden” to touch that area again, which I am glad not to expedite food.

The second day of Captain Cooks, I was assigned to stocking our walk-in cooler. That I have lots of complaints on. Firstly, because it is vividly etched into my mind, secondly because I cried over this job scope, thirdly, I kept getting mixed signals throughout my 8 hours of working there.

I would like to begin this topic with a little background about myself and the building itself so that you can fully understand my complaints. I come from a country called Singapore. Singapore is a small island in Southeast Asia whose temperature as of today is highest 87 and lowest 77 degrees F. In Singapore, we normally have a temperature of 80-90 throughout the year and it rarely even dips beyond 85, I feel. I am 4' - 11 1/10" tall, and of small build in the USA. I can barely see beyond the third highest guest shelf. I can barely touch the highest stocking shelf. I am not a strong female by nature, yet I was forced to carry 24 cans of full throttle.

The cooler I am going to elaborate on is as big as the walk-in cooler of the actual guest cooler. Although less than half belongs to the stocking area, as culinary cast members have their own food to stock and it takes up more than half of the area. The cooler’s temperature is constantly 40 or sometimes it dips to 36 degrees F. It is very tall and it is slanted so that the drinks can roll down to the guests. It also is a regulation that we are not allowed to wear our jackets in, because Mandy says that it is an outdoors jacket. However, due to the fact that I am unwilling to head a 30 minute walk to the new Captain Cooks, I have yet to borrow a turtleneck, though I have gloves.

I never had any problems at all stocking in the Tangora location. Why? Because all the stock were in the building itself. It was heavy, and I asked the chefs, I asked anyone around whether they could help me when I could manage the weight. I am unable to carry 24 bottles of 24oz Dasani without help.

Enough of background, let me now elaborate on everything that went wrong. Firstly, there was no stocker on the previous day, it therefore leads to the fact that I or Brennan whom I changed positions with, was the first stocker of the new location. Everything was in a mess, and there was literally no stock. Whatever I could do was to fill the coolers with every resource I had; whatever resource I placed out was grabbed by the guests. I had to go to the main stocking room, with some scrap paper writing of what I needed. I was given a cart that was noisy and hard to move, it was also extremely cold to touch except I had my gloves’ protection.

Literally, I spent my night bringing stuff down and filling up coolers. Due to the fact that I was unable to ascertain how much stock was needed, as I do not have place to fit too much stuff I never brought excess stock. Due to the fact that I am a weak and vertically challenged female, I found it hard to leave things off the tall shelves. Due to the fact that I only knew where the store rooms were and had no idea where the actual products was, I had to do a trip down myself and make lots of mistakes. Due to the fact that the cooler storeroom was so messy and there was no walking space, and every door crashed into me, I suffered much pain. Due to the fact that I still wasn’t fast enough, I had no training in the Captain Cooks here, my manager scolded me. Due to the fact that I knew very well that I was not to leave till 1.30 A.M., I stocked my cooler before doing my order sheet for the night. Due to the fact that I chose to be meticulous to locate items to analyze whether to stock or not, I got scolded by my manager again that most of the items were not short. Due to the fact that I was asked to do an order sheet and not be meticulous about it, I was really upset. At the end of the day, my manager said that I was too short and weak to be stocker, that really dampened my mood. I am not talking about being discriminated. I feel I am too short and weak to be stocker; but the question that kept ringing in my head was, “then why did you ask me to be stocker?”

I was really very angry at the fact that no one recognized that I was afraid of the cold stock room, no one recognized that I had to carry stuff into the cooler that is opened by getting the door open, and being fast enough to carry in.

I was scolded for not stocking fast enough when I had no experience, the worse experience that I broke down in the toilet was due to the fact that my hair was messy, due to my busy nature, I was not allowed to rest. I have no idea whether Ellen knew whether I came from a hot climate and being in that cooler was no joke. I have no idea whether Ellen knows how much Oxygen is being depleted just by staying awake and not fainting inside. I have no idea whether any of the managers actually care.

I repeat, I was and I still am upset. At the end of my stocking session, I was really too tired, especially after completing 11 hour and 10 hour shifts the previous days and only have half an hour shifts given to me. I am paid $6.90 for an hour, so I would be given $10.35 in return for hard, hard work over three days.

At the end of the day, I requested to my manager who was on the floor that I leave at 1.30 A.M. Firstly, because I am only paid till that time, secondly I am tired, thirdly, last night, the long walk, to the Ticketing and Transportation Center where I take a bus A back home, caused me to miss my bus and I reached home thanks to Disney Security.

I had no wish to take a nice break. But suddenly, I miss having a free access to a water supply. Water as in plain, filtered water. Many people feel that having fountain drinks are good for cast members as they can drink many flavors. But seriously, having a drink station outside reach of cast, means that they can only drink water based on managers’ approval. I need a place to rest my feet, and that place unlike the break room behind Tangaroa, has to be reached by walking in the COLD, noting that we are not allowed jackets, through the backstage, into stage to get into our canteen. For every time, we leave our positions, we keep having to endure the COLD. Personally, I find 75 degrees cold already, what more 40 degrees without a jacket to go for break. Another things I am really upset over is the missing of breaks. I do not see any system error following our old system of having an hour to a break. Now with divided breaks, very few people actually are entitled to their second break. I am one of them.

In short, just two days in the new location, I am super upset. I am giving this fresh day a new start. I am working at 2.30 P.M., which means that I should be cashering or greeting people. That is what I really am looking forward to. I spoke to one of my managers before about placing me on register, he was not very interested in understanding why I loved being cashier. The only reason why I love cashiering is: I AM NOT CHALLENGED VERTICALLY OR PHYSICALLY WHEN CASHIERING. That is an extremely important point, especially when you are vertically challenged and weaker than all your colleagues.

I am tired of working. This is my seventh day working in a row. After my ninth day, I shall finally be given an off day. I really hope this letter/email will not extent any longer. I really hope I will love this place, at least for the next 50 days more.

To why Brennan and I changed position with was a real sick joke. Because of whatever the chefs told my manager, she totally decided against ever placing me on the floor of expediting, she wanted our expeditor on the floor to bus tables for the apparent reason that she was more experienced but yet was unwilling to send me to expedite food. Therefore, she took the stocker to expedite food, took the expeditor to bus tables and the ambassador (busser) to be the stocker. Brennan apologized sweetly to me at the end of the day, after I complained to him about my role, which he could not stand after 1.5 hours of which he stood less than half an hour in the cooler.

Let me conclude, I am terribly busy in my current job, out of 7 job roles, I doubt I can take either expediting or stocking. I am seriously upset about returning to work, shortly. I am seriously hoping someone can take action.

With much love,

Donna Lim

Donna missed you at 9:58 AM~