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View Full Version : Where do I send a letter of complaint about a cast member?



azcavalier
05-03-2008, 11:06 AM
I am a very laid back guy, always obey the rules, and just want everyone to have a good time. But during the Spectromagic parade on Thursday night, one cast member really was a jerk to me, and got under my skin. My wife and I did something wrong (which is apparent now, but wasn't at the time), and this guy was a jerk and smart alec to me. All he had to do was explain, but he thought that he had to have a smart mouth. Here goes...

We were sitting on the curb on the little traffic island, across from the Main Entrance train station watching the 11pm SpectroMagic parade. There was a female cast member almost directly behind us. Anyone who has seen a Disney parade knows that there are huge gaps between the float "sections". It is important to note that this is the first parade we've bothered to watch since our first ever trip to a Disney park ten years ago, as we usually use that time to hit the bigger rides. Anyway, about halfway through, we decided that we had seen enough, and when a gap came (HUGE gap), my wife took off across the street. I started to go, made it halfway, and saw this guy running towards me from my right, about 40 feet away, yelling "No! No! No!" and had both hands out in fron tof him, waving towards us. So, I turned around and went back, and my wife was already across. When I got back to the curb, I turned around to look for my wife, and the guy was standing directly in front of me with his hands clasped behind his back, with his feet spread to block me from trying it again. He then said, "If you want to cross the street, then you will go over there (and pointed to a large group about 100 feet away to my right and behind me) and cross WITH EVERYONE ELSE." We had not seen that group, as we were sitting down on the curb, and as anyone here knows, the crowds are such that you can't see far.

So the guy was still blocking me from crossing the street, and I told him, "Look, i'm not going to cross now. I'm not that kind of guy." So he started to go back to his post, but looked back over his shoulder and yelled, "Then why did you just try it?!". I shouted back, "Because we didn't know that there was a rule against it!" He then shouted something back over his shoulder, but I didn't catch what he said. I then looked at the female cast member who had been beside us the whole time and I said to her, "Is he grumpy?" She smiled and said, "Yeah, I think he's having a bad night."

Thinking back, I can see that Disney doesn't want people darting across the street in the middle of a parade, for safety reasons. But at the time, all we saw was 15 feet to cross, and the next float wouldn't be there for at least a minute, as it hadn't even rounded the corner yet. Nowhere is it posted that you can't cross. They don't announce it, either. They do have ropes everywhere that people walk to guide them, but we weren't walking to get out. We were sitting on a curb with no barriers in front of us. The cast member that was right behind us NEVER SAID A THING, either.

Did we break the rules? Apparently so. But this guy should have realized a few things and handled it differently. He should have realized that when I saw him and went back that I wasn't going to THEN try and bolt across, over him, and in front of a float. I never raised my voice, and I was never sarcastic or angry sounding, yet he was NOT nice. All he had to do was tell me in a polite way that for safety reasons we were not supposed to do that, and could I please go cross at the designated areas. But he chose to be jerky instead. Look, he may have been having a bad night, but in any business they should teach you that you have to be nice to the customerregardless of how you're feeling about them, because the way you treat them reflects on the organization.

I don't know who he was (I didn't get his name), and it was dark so I probably couldn't describe him very well (other than he was probably about 5'6"). But i'd like to let SOMEONE at Disney know that some of these cast members could use some reminders on how to deal with park-goers.

Goofeygal
05-03-2008, 11:33 AM
He really could have handled it alot better then what he did. He could have kindly asked that you not cross there and show you where to cross and not have made a HUGE SCEEN.

bicker
05-03-2008, 11:35 AM
Without a name, it is pretty much an exercise in futility, but here's an address for you:

Walt Disney World Guest Communications
PO Box 10040
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-0040

Polynesian Dweller
05-03-2008, 11:41 AM
I may be in the minority on this one, but I don't really think the CM did any wrong in this case. He was doing what he's supposed to do, crowd control. If they don't prevent people from crossing during gaps then everyone would do it and that would cause lots of problems, not to mention safety issues for the performers and the audience. So, they have to let everyone in the area no that people can't do that otherwise, and we've seen this (at Disney and elsewhere), everyone starts to do it. For crowd control purposes, it has to be stopped quickly. This one's all about safety of everybody and he did his job, frustrating perhaps, but his job.

There's probably more of an issue with the CM behind you who didn't tell you to stop but then, I don't know the various job roles and it may not have been their responsibility.

bicker
05-03-2008, 11:55 AM
My impression was that the only issue was a matter of the CM's tone, and from lots of experience I've noted that perceived tone and projected tone are often MILES apart. So it boils down to whether you want to give benefit-of-doubt to the OP or to the CM. I say we give benefit-of-doubt to both, and just say no one was at fault -- that it was just an unfortunate miscommunication.

Sunshine1010
05-03-2008, 12:04 PM
Bottom line....he could have been nicer and/or more diplomatic about it.

Eric87
05-03-2008, 12:14 PM
I may be in the minority on this one, but I don't really think the CM did any wrong in this case. He was doing what he's supposed to do, crowd control. If they don't prevent people from crossing during gaps then everyone would do it and that would cause lots of problems, not to mention safety issues for the performers and the audience. So, they have to let everyone in the area no that people can't do that otherwise, and we've seen this (at Disney and elsewhere), everyone starts to do it. For crowd control purposes, it has to be stopped quickly. This one's all about safety of everybody and he did his job, frustrating perhaps, but his job.

There's probably more of an issue with the CM behind you who didn't tell you to stop but then, I don't know the various job roles and it may not have been their responsibility.

I agree with this statement. Also, if you didn't see anyone else cross where you did, then you and your wife were in the wrong. I know you admit to this now, but to the CM, he sees this and probably thinks,"I can't believe this couple is crossing in the middle of a parade." He definitely should have handled it face to face rather than throwing over the shoulder comments.

Coach P
05-03-2008, 12:17 PM
Bicker gave the address if you want to mail a letter. If you would like to send an email that address is [email protected]

Sorry about the experience.

mac badger
05-03-2008, 12:25 PM
sorry, i don't see anything terribly wrong with this either. perhaps he had a bit of an attitude with you, but on the other hand he was dealing with a public safety issue, so he was probably a bit pumped up from the adrenaline. do you know how dangerous crossing in front of a float is? even if you had enough time to cross if someone followed after you they might not get across in time. being run over by a float would probably kill you

joanna71985
05-03-2008, 12:27 PM
He could have handled it better. But he was just doing his job. It is really difficult to work the parade on Main Street, because of people running across the street.

DizneyRox
05-03-2008, 12:33 PM
A complaint about a Cast Member? I'm shocked! :blush:

I would go the e-mail route. It's probably going to amount to nothing, so it would be a shame to waste a stamp on it. Give as much of a description as you can about the cast member. That with the date/time they may be able to figure out who it was.

SpaceMtn101
05-03-2008, 12:50 PM
I understand your frustration with it and he could of not said the smart alec stuff back to you. BUT from a cm who has done crowd control that is one of the things that makes you so upset is when you have to get someone out of the way. Usually it is children who try to go play with the characters but i have had times when adults when run out in front of floats and we have to stop them. Usually people choose to do it when there really is no gap but a few seconds and they can get hit. I do commend you to waiting for a gap before attempting it. Think too those floats cannot stop if for some reason you drop something and take your time crossing. It is a safety issue. Honestly i think both were at fault and without a name nothing will be done but to remind ppl that they need to watch what they say.

LibertyTreeGal
05-03-2008, 01:56 PM
Well, I was at Disney once (Feb 2004) when a CM was killed by a float and so I look at this very differently from the OP. These people practically have to be like Secret Service agents protecting everyone from their own short sightedness or just blatant foolish stupidity.

To me it comes down to this -- you wanted him to cut you some slack so please set the example by cutting him some. We often expect better than we are willing to give. Generally a heartfelt apology will completely deflate any chance of a rude or sarcastic comeback, instead of becoming defensive. And as for him "knowing" that you weren't going to bolt across later, you would be surprised at how many people would do just that. He didn't know you from Adam so for safety's sake he had to assume you would.

I have talked to CM's about parade incidents while waiting for my family to finish riding something and there are often fist fights among guests and CM's routinely get yelled at and abused by people who are not doing the right thing. Perhaps he had one too many people abuse him that night before you showed up and he just couldn't be nice and cheery anymore. Maybe his mom died the week before, we don't know. I think we are too quick to tattle and judge when someone is rude to us. Maybe the situation would have been defused if you had simply smiled and said, "Oops, sorry, I feel like such an idiot, where can I cross that it is safe for everyone?"

CM's are real people with real issues and it really isn't reasonable to expect them to be super nice all the time, especially when guests are becoming ruder and more self-centered.

Last night I was at the Relay for Life, a fundraising walk for cancer research. They were wheeling and walking the kids with cancer around the track and four teenage girls decided to walk in front of them, mindlessly chatting in the middle as people withwheelchairs were coming closer. I finally, politely but firmly, asked them to move out of the way, and their response was probably what this guy has to deal with everyday. Not only weren't they sorry, or the slightest bit embarassed, but they proceeded to stand next to me talking about "what was her problem?" They walked as slowly as possible while holding up the cancer patients (mostly children). And that was out of a group of maybe 200 people. CM's have to deal with tens of thousands everyday.

azcavalier
05-03-2008, 04:41 PM
I appreciate all the responses. I realize that we were wrong for running across (even though the gap was HUGE), and I realize that he was doing his job. That's not the issue. It was HOW he did his job.

What's frustrating is that I came more than halfway BACK across the road to do what he asked when it would have been easier (and less embarrasing) to keep going and just leave, but I didn't. I did what he asked without being rude or smart-alecky, and yet he still was a jerk to me. THAT's my only complaint.

I'm sure that he deals with stupid people all day, and I imagine that crowd control is a tough job. While we made a mistake, I tried to rectify it by coming back to listen to him. He could have just handled it better, instead of flying off the handle.

Am I sending a letter to single him out? No. I would just like to let them know our experience so that they can reinforce how to handle it. Believe it or not, I work in customer service, and deal with complaints about employees of mine who I know are good people. But sometimes, you just need to remind them of their responsibilties and professionalism.

I guess that's why this bugs me so much. He was doing his job, but he was not professional about it.

Disnamic Duo
05-03-2008, 05:02 PM
To the OP: I think you have a legitimate gripe. You admit you were wrong, and you're not upset that the guy did his job. It's about HOW he did it. He should NOT have made the comment "then why did you just try it?" Totally unneccesary.

To you people who were hard on the OP: DID YOU NOT READ HIS WHOLE POST? He admits to making a mistake. Give him a break!

Nini
05-03-2008, 05:07 PM
Whoa, lots of sharp responses!

The CM was rude - I was under the impression that this is NOT good show! Unacceptable! No ones life was at stake.


Denise :mickey:

Speedy1998
05-03-2008, 05:41 PM
Thinking back, I can see that Disney doesn't want people darting across the street in the middle of a parade, for safety reasons. But at the time, all we saw was 15 feet to cross, and the next float wouldn't be there for at least a minute, as it hadn't even rounded the corner yet. Nowhere is it posted that you can't cross. They don't announce it, either. They do have ropes everywhere that people walk to guide them, but we weren't walking to get out. We were sitting on a curb with no barriers in front of us. The cast member that was right behind us NEVER SAID A THING, either.

.

No they do not post that you can not cross anywhere, however, before Spectrolmagic they do make several announcements that the lights will be dimmened, and for your own safety please refrain from moving around until the lights come back up.

On a different note, if you have an issue with a CM the best thing to do is take care of it at that time and go to guest relations to report the incident.

bicker
05-03-2008, 05:58 PM
Am I sending a letter to single him out? No. I would just like to let them know our experience so that they can reinforce how to handle it.I think the point is that such an advisory is best delivered when the complainant is faultless. (I cannot for the life of me remember the technical term for the concept... sorry.) Given the circumstances, your story isn't likely to hold enough water to make this worthwhile, which is what Coach P meant about it not being worth even just a stamp.

bicker
05-03-2008, 06:00 PM
Maybe I'm a bit touchy today, but I think that was totally uncalled for and rude.It wasn't, and this is really important. Allow for the fact that reasonable people disagree about this. Now think about how the folks who actually support the CM's side of this would express their perspective in this thread. I don't see anyone posting anything uncalled-for or rude in this thread.

Nini
05-03-2008, 06:12 PM
I understand people can disagree and have different opinions - and you're entitled to yours. I think this person was rude in how they expressed their opinion.


Denise :mickey:

TheRustyScupper
05-03-2008, 06:36 PM
1) I see nothing for you to complain about.
2) You were in error.
3) Not the CM.
4) After backing you up, he blocked further crossing by you.
5) He could not have known if you would comply, then dart across.
6) He was there for your safety and the safety of parade CM's.
7) If a float needs to move to avoid you, this protects other guests.
8) I am sorry, but accept your error and move on.

NOTE: This sounds harsh, but I have seen many people be admonished for wrongs and say OK to a CM, then turn around and do it anyhow.
Examples:
. . . letting kids skate in hotel lobbies
. . . allowing kids to use Heelies in parks
. . . cutting in line
. . . not moving to the end of the row in shows
. . . talking in shows
. . . using flash photography inside "dark" rides
. . . hanging over boat rails
. . . standing too close to vehicle/tram loading zones
. . . etc
. . . etc
. . . etc

crazypoohbear
05-03-2008, 06:37 PM
I think you need to word your letter carefully. I would make sure that you are clear you are not complaining about him doing his job. Only that you felt that he did not speak to you in the manner you would have liked.

Playing devils advocate MAYBE the guy who "yelled" at you was a friend and co worker of the guy who was killed in 04! hmmmm. that would make anyone touchy, seeing someone doing something that got a friend killed, and he did not want to live through that ordeal again

CaptainJessicaSparrow
05-03-2008, 07:24 PM
This might be me being biased, but I kinda side with the CM on it. Mostly because I work Main St. and I see it all the time, people trying to run across or literally standing in the road to get a picture, even after a CM has already said something.

And while the floats do have E-stops on them, they do weigh a couple thousand pounds, and don't stop in a second. It has a delay.

Like others have said, one bad example by you allows for others to think that if you did it, they could too. And then it becomes an issue. What if another impatient Guest had followed you and dragged their little child with them and the child tripped and fell? You've already used part of that 15 feet to get across, they're stuck and the float is 5 feet away? Hitting the brakes, it probably and most likely won't stop for at least 8 feet. That's how Flat Stanley was born, you know!

Then who would be responsible? You for setting the bad example and letting the family think it was okay because you did it or Disney for not stopping you and making a point? I can tell you who the family would go after, and you not having as much money as Disney would not be the target.

So, yeah....dispite the tone, I side with the CM.

ChipnDaleGal
05-03-2008, 07:25 PM
MODERATOR ALERT!!!

Okay everybody. We don't allow poeple to take shots at each other here. Looks like the OP knows he was wrong in crossing the road during a parade. Since he doesn't have the cast member's name, there really is no point in arguing about this. Let's keep our comments contructive, or we will just close the thread down.

My own personal opinion is that parade detail must be hard. You and your wife might have been the 100th person that cast member caught trying to cross the street that night. Maybe he didn't handle it the best way, but I think you should just let it go and not dwell on it anymore. Hopefully the rest of your trip was wonderful. Don't let this one incident drive you crazy.

BelleLovesTheBeast
05-03-2008, 07:50 PM
1) .

NOTE: This sounds harsh, but I have seen many people be admonished for wrongs and say OK to a CM, then turn around and do it anyhow.
Examples:
. . . letting kids skate in hotel lobbies
. . . allowing kids to use Heelies in parks
. . . cutting in line
. . . not moving to the end of the row in shows
. . . talking in shows
. . . using flash photography inside "dark" rides
. . . hanging over boat rails
. . . standing too close to vehicle/tram loading zones
. . . etc


I do have to agree with you on this. I worked retail and restaurants for years and couldn't believe how many people continued to do things once you told them not to. Most of the time it's for your own good.

A couple years ago I was a retail manager for a childrens clothing store. I told a father that this son needed to stop playing on the figures that the wheels popped off. That by playing on it he could knock it over on himself. I must have said something to him 3 or 4 times. A minute after I said something the last time. He knocked it over on himself along with 3 other fixtures.

All I can say is that he did his job. I wasn't there so I can't comment on anything else. However I think you'd be better to call than write. You're much more likely to get a response that way....and maybe the one you want.

azcavalier
05-03-2008, 08:57 PM
Thanks for all of the responses guys, no matter which way they were directed.

After working outside all afternoon and thinking about it, i'm just gonna let it go. Mainly because just ranting about it on here makes me feel better, but also because I don't think that it would do ANY good. I'm sure that Disney goes into way more detail than I'm giving them credit for when it comes to training their employees how to deal with the public. No matter how this guy chose to handle my situation, I doubt that he's like that all the time, or he wouldn't last long on his job. So my complaint wouldn't add anything to what they already say/do in training.

I'm sure that with as much crowd control they do at the parks, they've probably seen and handled everything. I think that this guy probably didn't realize our situation, that we had just been sitting there and saw a big gap. He probably thought that we just didn't want to wait with everyone else. I may have handled it differently if roles were reversed, but that just the difference in our personalities. Maybe when he gets to be my age (he was probably one of the college interns), he'll do things differently as well.

I'm kicking myself for not just talking to him more at the spot so that I could have left in a better mood.

WDWFanatic
05-03-2008, 10:38 PM
Thanks for all of the responses guys, no matter which way they were directed.


I'm kicking myself for not just talking to him more at the spot so that I could have left in a better mood.

I just wanted to say I've been very impressed with how you handled yourself in this thread.

Welcome to the boards!

Tinkerfreak
05-04-2008, 09:11 AM
I just wanted to say I've been very impressed with how you handled yourself in this thread.

Welcome to the boards!

I agree!!!
Welcome!!!

BluewaterBrad
05-04-2008, 12:05 PM
Yes, he should have handled it better, but cut him some slack. It didnt ruin your vacation. :mickey:

Ian
05-04-2008, 12:16 PM
Maybe I'm a bit touchy today, but I think that was totally uncalled for and rude.

Denise :mickey:I agree. In fact, there are a lot of very rude responses in this thread that I find to be WAAAAAAAAY over the line.

Perhaps some people need to go back and listen to their Mommy's who always used to say, "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all."

There's a right way and a wrong way to disagree with someone and this thread contains several prime examples of the wrong way. I'd expect some heavy editing and maybe a few PM's about bad attitudes.

We don't tolerate rudeness and abuse on INTERCOT. Folks might want to go back and read our TOS.

I'm very disappointed in this behavior. INTERCOT is all about courtesy and respect. Remember that.

daparish
05-04-2008, 05:37 PM
I just wanted to say I've been very impressed with how you handled yourself in this thread.

Welcome to the boards!

Ditto for me. :mickey:

SarahKate
05-06-2008, 04:24 PM
Yeah man, I think you should just GET OVER IT, which it sounds like you did. The CM definitely should not have gotten a 'tude with you like he did but it's probably a frustrating job.

Ok, I'm not flaming! You know who I am. :blush:

Beast_fanatic
05-06-2008, 05:10 PM
Since the original poster has received an answer about where to send a complaint, and has decided not to pursue it further, I'm going to close this.