Disneyland’s ‘magic makers’ see historic raises as strike is averted
Good morning. It’s Wednesday, July 31. I’m Carol Cormaci bringing you this week’s TimesOC newsletter with a look at some of the latest local news and events.
I don’t know if they’ll be whistling while they work, but Disneyland employees do have something to sing about this week, now that they’ve ratified a deal that averted what could have been the first strike at the theme park in 40 years. Employees at Disney California Adventure, Downtown Disney and the Disneyland Resort hotels also approved new contracts with the company.
Phew! It was just a little over a week ago that they overwhelmingly voted in favor of authorizing a strike.
Under the terms of the new three-year agreement approved Monday by thousands of workers, they will see pay increases amounting to $6.10 per hour over the life of the contract. They will also see a higher minimum wage of $24 an hour this year, additional compensation bumps for senior employees and a more flexible attendance policy for custodians, ride operators, candy makers, merchandise clerks and other workers, according to the Master Services Council, an alliance of labor unions representing some 14,000 Disneyland Resort employees.
“We are pleased that our cast members approved the new agreements, which, along with all we offer as part of our employment experience, demonstrate how much we value them and our profound commitment to their overall well-being,” Disneyland Resort spokesperson Jessica Good said in a statement.
In its own statement, the union bargaining committee noted the contracts did not come easily.
“Together by wearing buttons, attending rallies and telling their stories to the public, cast members fought for a more promising future for themselves, their fellow cast members, and their families. These contracts are historic for Disney cast members and we’re pleased cast members’ lives will improve as a result.”
My TimesOC colleague Gabriel San Román and our counterparts at the L.A. Times have been following this story as the unrest among Disneyland employees became public this year. The hyperlinks you see within this missive all lead to articles they’ve written. Here is the report San Román filed last night, which details one Disney California Adventure employee’s perspective on the new contract.
In the story, Ellie Gonzalez, says she remembered what it felt like to be a worker there in 2018 when the company paid $11 an hour, the state’s minimum wage at the time.
“It was hard making ends meet back then,” she says. “That’s why I got so motivated to be more involved with my union.”
San Román writes that Gonzalez, who is expecting twins, called the boost in minimum wages at the resort from $19.90 an hour to $24, “life changing.”
“Now that we have won this contract, I feel like I’ll be able to make ends meet, she told the reporter. “I’ll be able to pay my bills and provide the best possible life for my two babies.”
MORE NEWS
• For community outreach purposes, the Irvine Police Department plans to add a head-turning, all-electric Cybertruck to its fleet of patrol cars. A Cybertruck (not including the police lights being added to Irvine’s version) starts at $60,000. “It’s something fun to outreach, to capture the attention and imagination of the community,” Irvine Councilwoman Tammy Kim said.
• Regional leaders last week welcomed the news that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had awarded $500 million to combat climate pollution in Southern California. County Supervisor Katrina Foley called the share of the funds that will be coming to Orange County “transformative.” Authorized by the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant will empower local agencies to invest in electric alternatives for the transportation of goods. “We want clean air and a strong economy,” Foley said. “This grant will help us get there.”
• A judge last week found that Joe Dunn, a lawyer and former state senator from Santa Ana, violated professional ethics when he lied about the use of funds for overseas travel while working as the executive director of the State Bar of California. Prosecutors with the State Bar had sought a 60-day suspension of Dunn’s law license, but Judge Yvette Roland recommended one year of probation.
• Three Orange County locations are among the dozens of stores in California that Big Lots plans to close due to flagging sales. Anaheim will lose two, at 1670 W. Katella Ave. and 6336 E. Santa Ana Canyon Road. The third O.C. Big Lots that will be closed is at 30501 Avenida De Las Flores, Rancho Santa Margarita.
PUBLIC SAFETY & COURTS
• A candlelight vigil was held last night for a missing 15-year-old swimmer after the Coast Guard called off its search for the male who was last seen Sunday night in the water near lifeguard Tower 11 in Huntington Beach. The name of the teen had not been released as of Tuesday afternoon.
• Three men were behind bars Thursday in connection with the robbery of a Secret Service agent in Tustin last month. The suspects were identified as Jamonte Fitzgerald Johnson, Bertran Claude Bell and Eshon Dwayne Dodson.
• Authorities doing a welfare check at a Newport Beach residence last Friday night found the body of Reginald Hidalgo Fils 48, with signs of trauma that led them to believe he was the victim of a homicide. Detectives were led to Chino Hills resident Brandon Christian Chanman, 35, whom they contacted and subsequently arrested on suspicion of murder.
• A Superior Court judge last Wednesday sentenced 33-year-old Raul Gastellum Flores to life in prison without the possibility of parole for four Orange County murders in 2015, in what prosecutors describe as a drug cartel-related takeover.
• DNA testing led investigators to the identification of the person who was the victim of a 2009 killing in Irvine, authorities announced last week. While the body that had been found in an industrial area was at first thought to be of a woman in her 20s, it turned out she was a 14-year-old Nevada girl who had been missing.
• A 21-year-old man serving a four-year prison sentence for pimping in Orange County was killed by another inmate on Sunday, California corrections officials announced. Shawn Jackson Jr., incarcerated at the California State Prison in Corcoran, died after he was allegedly beaten by another inmate. The death is being investigated as a homicide.
• Crime briefs culled from City News Service reports:
— Somebody threw a rock through an office window at Rep. Michelle Steel’s district office in Cypress on Friday morning. According to Steel’s office, the rock was thrown through the second- story window of the office in the 10800 block of Holder Street. No injuries were reported.
— Effrum Maland Burnett was sentenced Thursday to 46 years to life in prison for fatally stabbing a resident of a sober living facility in an unincorporated area between Anaheim and Stanton over a dispute about a pickup truck. The 53-year-old was convicted June 4 of second-degree murder with a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a knife. He was convicted of killing 50-year-old Toye Mims Jones on July 18, 2023.
— Yorba Linda resident Jorge Armando Contreras, 53, a former Magnolia School District administrator, was sentenced to nearly six years in federal prison Thursday for embezzling more than $16 million dollars from the district.
— A 73-year-old resident of Orange was charged Monday with threatening Orange County Sheriff’s Department deputies with a knife and leading law enforcement on a chase. Glen Montgomery pleaded not guilty to assault with a weapon, resisting arrest, resisting an executive officer, receiving stolen property, leading police on a chase and leading police on a chase driving in the opposite direction of traffic, all felonies.
SPORTS
• The semiannual Costa Mesa Grand Prix on July 21 returned to a closed circuit course north of the 405 Freeway, taking 400 riders in a series of races that offered riders a chance to increase their ranking and win cash prizes. In the Men Pro 1-3 race, 35-year-old professional cyclist Cory Lockwood, riding for Miami Blazers, came in first. Long Beach resident Colleen Gulick, also 35, crossed the finish line first in the Women Pro 1-3 category. Gulick recently qualified to represent Team USA in the Olympic Long Team.
• Laguna Beach resident and champion street skateboarder Nyjah Huston on Monday won the bronze medal at the Summer Olympics in Paris. It’s the first Olympics medal for the 29-year-old.
• An incoming senior at Huntington Beach High, Trent Grindlinger, made the roster for the USA Baseball 18U National Team on July 21 following the completion of training champ. Grindlinger, a catcher, and his teammates headed to Panama this week for the 2024 World Baseball Softball Confederation U-18 Baseball World Cup Americas Qualifier, which begins Friday.
LIFE & LEISURE
• If you subscribe to Hulu, check out the newly released second season of the series “Reptile Royalty,” a reality TV look at the day-to-day operations of Jay Brewer’s Reptile Zoo in Fountain Valley. This season’s six episodes feature everyone from the Harlem Globetrotters to the Fountain Valley Fire Department, from comedian Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias to internet personality Brent Rivera, according to this Daily Pilot feature story.
• Having set itself apart as Orange County’s largest do-it-yourself makerspace, Urban Workshop in Costa Mesa turned 10 earlier this month. The 28,000-square-foot workshop boasts a wood shop, an auto shop and a metal shop. It serves hobbyists and businesses alike, according to this feature story in The Pilot. Its founder and chief executive Steven Trindade said the business has had more than 4,300 members in the last decade, with member businesses generating about $170 million in revenue for the local economy.
CALENDAR THIS
• Goin Native Therapeutic Gardens marks its 10th anniversary with the Festival of the Butterflies, set 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. this Saturday at Los Rios Park, 31791 Los Rios St., San Juan Capistrano. Visitors can enjoy the Butterfly Beer & Wine Garden, the “Kidz Zone” with free activities, a children’s butterfly parade, a butterfly headpiece contest, educational opportunities and the sale of arts and crafts.
• Marconi Automotive Museum & Foundation for Kids is celebrating 30 years of philanthropy with a free open house this Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The museum is located at 1302 Industrial Drive, Tustin.
• A three-night demolition derby of RVs comes careening into the O.C. fairgrounds’ Action Sports Arena tonight, tomorrow night and Sunday night, as area public safety personnel compete for a spot in the winners’ circle and for the benefit of Children’s Hospital of Orange County. Doors open at 6:30, and the show begins at 7:30 each night. All proceeds benefit CHOC and include free same-day admission to the O.C. Fair. To purchase tickets or donate directly to the cause, visit raiseup.choc.org/derby.
Until next Wednesday,
Carol
KEEP IN TOUCH
I appreciate your help in making this the best newsletter it can be. Please send news tips, your memory of life in O.C. (photos welcome!) or comments to carol.cormaci@latimes.com.
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