The big parade will not take place. A walkout is even announced at the Pavillon des Princesses. This Saturday, June 3, nearly a thousand demonstrators stormed the castle of Sleeping Beauty, the emblem of Disneyland Paris. Their slogans break the “Disney magic” : “Tired of being broke like Donald Duck”, “Despite his big ears, Mickey doesn’t listen to us”.
Three days later, on June 6, some of the employees of Europe’s leading tourist destination again voted to strike and march. THE “land of dreams that come true” is overtaken by social anger. Samir Chagroune is jubilant: “Never had we succeeded in mobilizing the small hands of the park to this extent. They came out of the shadows. » The 30-year-old, Avengers bag on his back, displays the good humor essential to his job as guest flow, which consists in managing the flow of visitors.
Union flags are flying in the crowd, but the banner at the head of the procession announces: “Anti-Inflation Movement” (MAY). Samir Chagroune is one of the spokespersons for this independent collective of employees which organizes the social movement. The Norman worked at McDonald’s before applying, six years ago, to the kingdom of Mickey. A childhood dream as much as a career plan. In unison with many employees, he describes a “passionate job”. “When I have Winnie the Pooh as a colleague, when Eeyore pats me on the shoulder during my cigarette breaks, when I can bring smiles to sick children, I tell myself that I am doing one of the best jobs in the world. »
A heartbreaker
But, behind the smiles and the uniforms of heroes, the fed up of cast members – the name Disney gives to its employees – has been brewing for years. After two strikes with little media coverage, so as not to tarnish the image of a little paradise, the employees decided to make their discomfort visible by marching through the attractions on Main Street on May 30. Heartbreaking for many, who swear by the “respect for the park” and its visitors. The answers (125 euros premium, part of the 13e monthly payment, an incentive to monetize their time savings account) from management, who did not wish to answer our questions, are considered insufficient. “There was no other way to be heard”, argues Samir Chagroune.
The list of frustrations stretches like the queue in front of Big Thunder Mountain, the most popular roller coaster in the park: wages around the minimum wage when the cost of living explodes; chronic understaffing that forces ordinary employees to manage armies of temporary workers; flexible schedules that harm health and impact social life. “Before the Covid, small gestures compensated a little: small bonuses, lunches, free outings, remembers Samir Chagroune. They disappeared and never came back. » The employees claim that their degraded working conditions no longer allow them to apply the “Disney Philosophy” : safety, courtesy, spectacle, efficiency, inclusion.
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