A Disneyland Resort Cast Member took to social media to share the problems of Disability Access Service at the Disney Parks following his departure from the company.
Fired Accessibility Services Cast Member Talks About DAS
User TourGuide Ryan on TikTok shared an over 7-minute video about his experience working for Disneyland’s Accessibility Services department. Ryan had worked at Disneyland since 2013 and joined the Accessibility Services team when it launched with updates to the Disability Access Service in June 2024. He was fired on July 2, 2025.
Ryan explained that he joined the team because he “wanted to help people.” However, he said, “It often felt to me like the focus wasn’t always on helping as much as I thought it could be.”
Ryan noted there was overuse and abuse of DAS, and he believes the system did need to change. But, “In my opinion, the corrections went too far and sometimes people who genuinely needed support were left with very limited options.”
Queue Re-Entry
Among those options was queue re-entry, which Ryan described as “purely word of mouth.” There is nothing in the digital system designating a guest’s pass for queue re-entry. They are required to explain their situation to a Cast Member at each attraction. Ryan said guests frequently reported that Cast Members denied queue re-entry, saying they don’t use the system or don’t know what it is.
Queue re-entry wasn’t always a failure, though, Ryan said. But even when it worked as intended, it still meant the majority of a party waited in the queue while the guest with a disability waited outside. This worked fine for larger parties where someone could wait with the disabled guest, but it did not work well for smaller parties.
Ryan shared the story of a veteran with PTSD who struggled with crowded, indoor spaces. He came to Disneyland for his young daughter’s birthday. The party consisted of him, his wife, and his two children. Ryan was instructed to offer him queue re-entry and some re-admission passes, which are similar to Lightning Lane but with no specific time frame for entry.
While the family accepted the options, the dad did point out that he would have to wait, separated from his family for most of his daughter’s birthday. He “expected better from Disney.” Ryan said that moment hit him hard.
Disability Access Service Wording
Ryan went on to explain the circumstances of his firing. He read the exact definition of DAS from the Disneyland website:
DAS is one of the programs offered at the Disneyland Resort theme parks to accommodate those Guests who, due to a developmental disability such as autism or similar, are unable to wait in a conventional queue for an extended period of time.
“To me, that ‘autism or similar’ phrasing left some room for interpretation,” Ryan explained, “and sometimes I tried to use that flexibility to do what I thought was right for the guest in front of me. Eventually, management and I did not see eye to eye on this. They felt I was bending the rules too much, and I felt like I was just trying to take care of people. It’s that disagreement that cost me my job.”
Ryan said he had also raised concerns about the system’s flaws more than once, and he doesn’t know if that played into his firing.
“I want to also be clear the Cast Members I worked with in the department were amazing,” Ryan said. “They were compassionate, caring. And it breaks my heart that I can’t tell you how many times that I saw one of my fellow Accessibility Services Cast Members backstage on their break in tears. And come to find out it’s because they had a really difficult conversation with a guest. They wanted to be able to help them, they knew we should be doing more, but they were restricted by the guidelines in place.”
Ryan shared another story of helping a guest during the first week that the Accessibility Services department was open. They then gifted Ryan a crocheted Baymax because “no one had ever been that kind to them.” Ryan carried the Baymax in his pocket during every shift as a reminder of why he was there.
“I poured so much of myself into Disneyland,” he said. “If there’s one thing I learned, it’s this: always take care of yourself first. Always do what you know is right in your heart. Because at the end of the day, whether it’s Disney, Walmart, Amazon, any corporation, they’re businesses. Their job is to make money, it’s why they exist. If you let a job push you into compromising your morals or your values, just to stay employed, speaking from experience, it takes a toll.”
“Don’t lose yourself, don’t let a company convince you that your worth is only what you contribute to their bottom line. Take care of yourself and stay true to who you are.”
Watch Ryan’s video embedded below.
There have been frequent complaints about Disney’s DAS updates in the past year. Guests with narcolepsy and terminal cancer have been denied access. The DAS Defenders group has continued to advocate for changes. Since the June 2024 DAS overhaul, Disney has made slight changes to the service’s wording and extended the validity period, but made no other major changes. A class action lawsuit was filed regarding DAS earlier this year.
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