Even at a magical place, Jayden Cunningham faces all work and no play.
One of the best things about working at an amusement park is being in such a wondrous place. Looking at pictures of excited little kids coming off the roller coaster like it’s their first ever experience on one. Seeing all those cool Lego models while walking around made me feel really good. But even with all the joyful things one may see, the environment at Legoland isn’t as professional as one might think.
I’ve worked at Legoland for three years now. Growing up, I would play with Legos frequently and make some sweet creations with them like Star Wars spaceships, and so that was a big motivator for me when I applied there. My first position was a photo sales associate for Pomvom, the company that sells photos at Legoland. I was upgraded to be team lead a year later. I got to take on bigger responsibilities around the park, such as overseeing co-workers and making sure they weren’t goofing off, along with giving reports to my higher-ups on how many photos sold that day. I was very friendly with many of the team leaders, so it was easy for me to get a grasp on everything when I was promoted.
I will say, Legoland was a super unique work environment.
Walking around the park and taking photos of happy families on roller coasters and different attractions made me feel good. But despite these aspects, there were a lot of problems happening behind the scenes. There were points where we were being overworked in which our former manager, Laura, ended up getting in trouble because of it. Payment-wise, we only received $17 an hour for our labor despite the increased hours and workload we received. Bland food, ignorance towards work accommodations. It seems like a lot of the workers weren’t treated very well. The team leads were playing favorites and even demoted one of my co-workers simply because they didn’t like them, which put them in a harsh financial situation. Honestly, the higher ups were just acting like a bunch of children who didn’t act like someone in their position should or would!
IT FELT MAGICAL BEING THERE
I wouldn’t want to work at Legoland again. I want to work somewhere where I feel as if I’m valued as an employee and am given the proper amount of pay. But there’s a potential risk of me quitting if I cannot find a job elsewhere, so I’ll very likely be staying, but I would at least like a bonus with my pay. I also want to see a more professional work environment where management listens to their employees. I love Legoland and all the fun this place brought me, but when we aren’t receiving enough in exchange for our work, it only creates more problems that ends up resulting in our team becoming dysfunctional with one another. The joy that this place brings families and kids should be reciprocated to those who are employed there as well!
