I am wondering if when you are down there if you can cross train between Merchandise and Food and Beverage. I mean, is this a common thing or are you stuck on one for your entire stay there. Personally, I would like to do as many things as possible and that would mean moving between the two types of positions. Brad
Nope, once u are hired for one possition you have to stay in the same possition for your whole yeah, unless something extraordinary happens. But its veeeery difficult to change from one thing to another, specially also in some pavillions. I ve heard that sometimes you can change from atracctions to merchandise, but never from food to merch See ya Carlos Mexico F&B 03-04
Hey brad i was thinking the same as u when i went to the interview i wanted to work in merch but i am being placed in F&B but i also wanted the chance to do every area but from what ive read it would be very hard to change but then again u never know what could happen when ur out there someone from merch or attractions may have to leave and a position may become avaiable love sarah xxx
Thanks guys for all your help. I guess I will just hope and prey that I can move around once I get down there. Brad
wow sorry to ruin the dream but i heard its pretty impossible to switcharoo...but i guess ull grow to love the job ur in neway!
I talked to this girl, and she said she had worked all three positions (this was in the norwegian pavilion, so there was also attractions) so it's probably possible...
yeah i ahve herd that with attractions ppl can move...i wish the uk had one....like a big ben stylr ride that worked like the playstaion at blakpool! u know like up n down...or that doctor one in universal is maybe a better example
Yeah Emma that would be good. I suppose when we get there we will find out if there is any way to switch jobs for a while, but doubt it. Depends which pavilion you are in. Got to say I'm pleased I got merch as it was my 1st choice ;D Helen x
Please girlies dont get me wrong im so so so so so so happy to be going but i a way i hope we can chage at some point as i would like to make the most out of every opportunity i can do while im out there im just gutted that england doesnt have a ride I would love to do that ;D take care love sarah xxx
That girl would be me, hehe... I did work all three, yes, but for simple reasons... I was hired in attractions, but attractions and merchandise were merged (along with custodial, this was called mac...) so that's why I worked in merch. I worked in F&B for 6 weeks because they were heavily understaffed in seating... they had just started the Storybook Princess Breakfast. So only in extreme cases can you cross over from one to the other...
It happened a couple times in Canada while I was there but it took several months and that was going from Merch to F&B...not the other way around. They always need more people in F&B and merch is usually fine. DO NOT get your hopes up because to be completely honest with you...it'll never happen. You'll be happy you're in F&B when you're making the big bucks and any cross-training will delay your chances of becoming a server. Shan
when my sister worked in the Uk F&B she really wanted to switch to merch, but wasn't allowed. When she went to ask if she could possibly swap, the reply was "well what have you come to Disney for then?". So dont push it too much. Unfortunately, she came home after four months, but she's regretting it now. From the sounds of it her friends are having a blast. If you can stick out the first four months on the podium in the UK, then you can go onto serving, and thats much better. Wish i was going for the year prog, but still have two more years at uni..... Summer should be great tho ;D
If you get bored on podium in F&B then you are even more likely to get bored in Merch. I know of only one person to have swapped from UK Merch to UK F&B but they had to stay on podium for their entire contract. They never got the chance to work in a tipped position. Occasionaly people from F&B had the opportunity to do Kidcot cause Merch were understaffed, but I know of no-one who swapper for good and to be honest when you see the benefits of staying in F&B and earning tips you may not want to swap anymore. Be careful about asking to swap as *Sar'Bear* mentioned. Managers can get funny about it. Technically, there is nothing stopping you from taking the Merchentainment classes at Disney University on your own time and then approaching the Merch managers and asking them to schedule you if they have any free shifts. That way you are not making a complete swap, you are getting a taste for both departments and you are still meeting the conditions of you Visa by working within the pavillion. That I would think is your best course of action Rich
Just to follow up with what you've said Rich. That is really unlikely to happen. Unfortunately, you need 2.5 - 3 days of OJT (On the job training) before you can be scheduled in merch. And that's not likely to be undertaken lightly as a trainer would need to be scheduled and paid at trainers rate. so it really wouldn't be worth while from the merch managers point of view So I'm agreeing with all the alumni here. It's not impossible, but extremely rare and even then only in extreme circumstances; and even then, possibly not a wise move. :-\ Ona x
