Labor board rules Disney didn't discriminate against Orlando union workers by withholding bonuses

The National Labor Relations Board ruled Friday that Walt Disney World did not discriminate against Orlando union workers when the company chose to withhold $1,000 bonuses from those employees.

Back in January, Disney announced it would give $1,000 one-time cash bonuses to 125,000 domestic workers – an initiative that the theme park company attributed to GOP corporate tax cuts.

The six Orlando unions that make up the Service Trades Council Union filed an unfair labor complaint against Disney, alleging the company was retaliating against unionized cast members by refusing to give them the $1,000 bonus until they approved Disney's wage offer. Back in December, workers overwhelmingly voted to reject the contract offering a 6 to 10 percent increase over two years for non-tipped workers. Cast members making $10 per hour would only get a 50-cent raise in their hourly wages during the first year. Union leaders fighting for $15 per hour wage compared Disney's proposed pay raises to "poverty wages."

But NLRB Regional Director David Cohen dismissed the unions' complaint on Friday, arguing that there was "no evidence" to show Disney's decision to bargain with STCU over the bonuses was motivated by "anti-union animus."

Read more: https://www.orlandoweekly.com/Blogs/archives/2018/06/01/labor-board-rules-disney-didnt-discriminate-against-orlando-union-workers-by-withholding-bonuses