TheStreet’s Conway Gittens brings the latest business headlines from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange as markets open for trading Tuesday, May 21.
Related: Disney World cuts classic character from meet-and-greets amid scrutiny
Full Video Transcript Below:
CONWAY GITTENS: I’m Conway Gittens reporting from the New York Stock Exchange. Here’s what we’re watching on TheStreet today.
Stocks are coming off a mixed day on Wall Street with the tech heavy Nasdaq closing at an all time high ahead of Nvidia’s earnings. Investors are also looking ahead to speeches from Federal Reserve officials as well as minutes from the committee’s latest meeting for insights into the path forward on interest rates.
In other news - The Happiest Place on Earth is dealing with some not-so-happy employees. 1,700 Disneyland cast members who play characters in the California theme park have voted to unionize under the Actors’ Equity Association. Disneyland has more than 21,000 total cast members, from food service workers to hair and make-up artists, and they’re represented by more than a dozen different unions.
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Until now, those who dress up as famous Disney characters around the park have been excluded from unions.
But now they’ll have their say, with the Actors’ Equity Association saying in a statement “These workers are on the front lines of the Guest experience; they’re the human beings who create lifelong memories when your kids hug a character, or when your family watches a parade roll by the castle.” The cast members are seeking improved health and safety, wages, benefits, working conditions, and job security.
While this may be a shock to the system at Disneyland, actors and characters at Disney World in Florida have been unionized under Equity since 1990. Today, the Association represents around 800 cast members at the theme park.
That’ll do it for your daily briefing. From the New York Stock Exchange, I’m Conway Gittens with TheStreet.
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