An independent arbitrator has stopped what would have been a history-making labor strike, had it happened, by food service workers at Disney World’s Epcot in Orlando, thereby forcing workers to take a different approach to leverage their demands for a new union contract.
Restaurant workers at Epcot’s Italy Pavilion, represented by Unite Here Local 737, are employed by the Patina Group, a third-party company that leases property from Disney. The union — which represents 70 workers at Tutto Italia, Via Napoli and Tutto Gusto — has been in talks with Patina for a new union contract since earlier this year. Their last contract expired Sept. 30.
But after talks remained unsuccessful, union leaders announced in August that workers would vote on whether to authorize union leaders to call for a strike — the first ever by food-service workers on Disney World property — if the company failed to meet their demands for higher pay and stronger benefits.
According to Jeremy Haicken, president of Unite Here Local 737, Disney didn’t like this threat.
The multinational entertainment giant, which has its own contract with labor unions, caught wind of this strike threat and asked an independent arbitrator to intervene. This neutral party then ruled, in favor of Disney, that a strike by any workers on Disney World property — even if not directly employed by Disney itself — would constitute a violation of their current contract with Local 737 and five other unions that make up the Services Trade Council Union.
Under that five-year contract, last negotiated in 2023, the STCU “shall not sanction, aid or abet, encourage or condone a work stoppage, strike or disruptive activity at the Walt Disney World Resort.”
Matt Hollis, who serves as president of the STCU, confirmed that Disney had the right to intervene in this case, and had exercised its right under their contract with STCU to do so. “Under our collective bargaining agreement, either party can file a grievance and move the matter to arbitration,” Hollis told Orlando Weekly in a phone call. “Disney did that in this case, and the arbitrator found that Disney was correct and that the union had violated the collective bargaining agreement.”
Haicken himself confirmed this development at a press conference Tuesday. “The arbitrator ruled that Patina Group employees cannot strike,” he said. Meaning, a strike will not be happening at Disney Epcot’s Italy Pavilion.
“We encourage guests to dine at Patina restaurants and tell the company you support the workers when you eat there,” Haicken continued. “The fight,” he said, “is moving forward.”
The Walt Disney Company did not respond to a request for comment from Orlando Weekly on their decision to interfere with the Patina Group workers’ strike threat. The Patina Group argues they’ve made attempts to bargain with the union in good faith and that they maintain “strong labor relationships nationwide.”
Unionized workers at the Italy Pavilion are fighting for an $8 raise over three years, a pension plan so older employees can retire with dignity, affordable health insurance, and a 20 percent auto gratuity on customer checks. Under their last union contract, workers at the Italy Pavilion restaurants currently earn anywhere from $18.50 to $26.48 per hour. That maxes out at about $55,000 per year working full-time, depending on an employee’s job classification and seniority.
According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, workers in the Orlando metro area in 2025 need to be able to earn at least $33 an hour to be able to comfortably afford the average one-bedroom apartment, or $37.65 to splurge on a two-bedroom unit.
“Living paycheck to paycheck is my reality,” said Jennifer Quiñones, who’s worked at Tutto Italia for 11 years. She moved back into her grandmother’s house, but said her cost of living has still “skyrocketed.”
“All of us experience the same thing: Our bills are too high. Patina needs to do more,” she said.
Local 737 is also involved in an organizing effort among Patina Group workers at five Disney Springs restaurants: Morimoto Asia, Maria & Enzo’s, Enzo’s Hideaway, Pizza Ponte and The Edison. The Patina Group, a subsidiary of the multibillion-dollar company Delaware North, operates more than 40 restaurants across several states.
Garrett Stephens, a server at The Edison in Disney Springs — a non-union Patina Group restaurant — said he hasn’t been to a doctor in 10 years because he can’t afford health insurance. “I need to go to a doctor, and honestly, I’m scared,” he said. “But that’s also why I feel so determined. Because me and my co-workers deserve better.”
“We’re demanding a fair process from Patina for us to organize a union,” Stephens said. He also wants Patina to be held accountable for allegations of sexual harassment made by two women at Pizza Ponte.
At least one of those women, Julie Ruiz, was fired last fall in part after she publicly spoke out against the harassment (allegedly perpetrated by a supervisor). She also has had a prominent role in organizing a union at her restaurant. The official reason Ruiz was given for her firing was for wearing an earbud as she clocked into work, but union leaders have cast doubt on that justification.
“I’m here because I’m still fighting,” Ruiz, a young Latina, said Tuesday, standing alongside fellow Patina Group workers and Local 737 union members at Local 737’s union hall. “Not just for myself,” she added. “Sexual harassment should not be tolerated. We all deserve higher standards at work.”
According to Disney’s own supplier chain code of conduct, the company believes its “suppliers (defined as “any person or entity engaged in the production or provision of materials, components, products, or services that Disney acquires, authorizes or licenses”) should be held to bare minimum labor standards, too.
Under the company’s code of conduct, suppliers “must treat each worker with dignity and respect and not use corporal punishment, threats of violence, or other forms of physical, sexual, psychological, or verbal harassment or abuse.” Special attention, it reads, “should be paid to vulnerable groups, including, but not limited to, women, younger workers, migrants, and Indigenous peoples.”
Haicken said that the union is calling on the Patina Group to adhere to Disney’s code of conduct for suppliers and has demanded that Disney investigate the Patina Group for potential violations of the code, including alleged violations of workers’ collective bargaining rights.
“This year, a National Labor Relations Board Regional Director issued a complaint against Patina that includes six allegations of illegal surveillance by management, one allegation of a coercive threat and one allegation that a general manager illegally prohibited employee speech about protected organizing activity,” Haicken said.
Union members and allies, including Ruiz, staged a flyering event to raise awareness of these allegations earlier this year during the high-profile “Ramen Rumble” event at Morimoto Asia, a Japanese restaurant on Disney Springs property operated by Patina.
“Workers and their union are calling on Patina Group to live up to Disney’s standards outlined in the Disney Supply Chain Code of Conduct, which sets high expectations for all companies that provide services authorized by Disney,” Haicken said.
A union rep for Local 737 confirmed that, while unionized Patina Group workers at Epcot will not be striking, the union will continue bargaining with the Patina Group for a new union contract covering the Italy Pavilion employees.
A strike can provide critical leverage for organized labor during union contract negotiations, so without that, the workers will have an uphill battle ahead to get their demands met without major concessions.
“We are committed to fighting,” said Quiñones, the Tutto Italia worker. “We are never backing down.”
Update added 10/16/25: A representative of the Patina Group reached out after the initial publication of our story and shared the following statement with Orlando Weekly, in response to allegations brought forward against their company and the current state of bargaining with Local 737:
“Patina Group values its team members and the exceptional service they provide to our guests. We have been bargaining in good faith with UNITE HERE Local 737 regarding the 72 unionized employees at EPCOT. Unfortunately, the union has not reciprocated. Despite multiple sessions, UNITE HERE Local 737 has yet to offer any economic counterproposals — an approach that does not serve our team members well.
“Patina Group is in full compliance with the Disney Supply Chain Code of Conduct. We are disappointed that UNITE HERE Local 737 is attempting to discredit Patina Group through untruthful allegations. We are confident these claims will be disproved through the appropriate process at the National Labor Relations Board.
“We recognize that Disney and UNITE HERE Local 737 have a direct collective bargaining agreement that includes negotiated language regarding team members’ ability to engage in certain concerted activity, including the ability to strike. This language was recently reviewed and upheld by a neutral arbitrator.
“Patina Group and its parent company Delaware North maintain strong labor relationships nationwide and will continue to honor our agreements, support the grievance process and treat employees with dignity. We remain committed to continuing negotiations in good faith and are hopeful that an agreement can be reached.”
This post first appeared at our sister publication, Orlando Weekly.
Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.
Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | BlueSky
Related Stories
Government shutdown dooms thousands of Central Floridians to work unpaid
Florida’s minimum wage rises to $14 an hour
If elected as attorney general, José Rodriguez vows to actually enforce Florida minimum wage law
This article appears in Oct. 16 – 22, 2025.