question about employment

okay im currently a ride operator at Hersheypark.

at Hersheypark in the rides department we are separated into ride groups i am in the Pioneer frontier Area of the park which means each day i come into work its a surprise of which rides i get i rotate between StormRunner,Sidewinder,Fahrenheit & 2 kiddie rides.4

Im seeking employment next year at Cedar Point in the rides department and just had a question about the rides. are you separated into ride sections or groups and do you rotate between your rides and if your at one attraction all year do you get to pick which ride you want and what are your chances of getting it. also i wont be 18 until may 30,2012 will i be able to process in that late and still get employee housing

i would love for all of these questions to be answered !!! thank You hope to hear from some of you

I don't know much about ride hosts, so I can't answer those. But as to the housing part, yes, you'll definitely still get employee housing. At that point of the season, most of the international students haven't processed in, yet.

You are usually assigned to one ride, at least on the bigger rides. Some of the flat rides are grouped together where you'll rotate between several rides, but always with the same crew. People frequently will cross train on other rides and maybe even work on another ride for a while (or transfer permanently) but in general, you'll have one "home" ride or crew.

Ralph Wiggum said:
You are usually assigned to one ride, at least on the bigger rides. Some of the flat rides are grouped together where you'll rotate between several rides, but always with the same crew. People frequently will cross train on other rides and maybe even work on another ride for a while (or transfer permanently) but in general, you'll have one "home" ride or crew.

Okay do you think its worth leaving Hersheypark just to experience it for a summer & if you know at all whats the typical day like example

(position rotation at rides,Where to eat for Break,Lenghth Of breaks,days in a typical work week,Starting wage,Perks,Shift Change etc)

Hersheyboy said:

(position rotation at rides,Where to eat for Break,Lenghth Of breaks,days in a typical work week,Starting wage,Perks,Shift Change etc)

Rotations occur every 30 minutes (most often) to 2 hours.

The park has an employee cafeteria near the Scrambler and an additional employee break area serving lower-cost food, with fewer options, behind Stockade in Frontiertown. Break areas are scattered throughout the park. Employees also have the option of purchasing food from a normal food venue, but must consume it in a break area or the cafeteria when working.

Generally speaking, you receive 15 minutes worth of a break for every 2 hours you work. Each shift has a predetermined allotment of breaks based on how long it typically runs. For example, on a standard 10am to 10pm operating day:
-Open to Close = 45min, 30min, 15min
-Open to 8 and 11:30 to Close = 45min, 30min
-Open to 6 and 1:30 to Close = 45min, 15min
-Split = 2 15min breaks, one before and one after your split.
There are additional shift possibilities, but this the most common spread.

Work weeks are 6 days per week. If you need more than 1 day off, you must contract it off prior to starting work, or put in a request off sheet with the department.

Starting wage is minimum wage; $7.40/hour, I believe, as of this season.

Most common shifts include:
-Open to Close
-Open to 8
-11:30 to Close
-Open to 6
-1:30 to Close
-Split (Open to 1:30 and 6:00 to Close)

...and when staffing is very good, the following are possible, depending on how the person who does you scheduling makes the shifts:
-1:30 to 6
-11:30 to 6
-1:30 to 8
-11:30 to 8

DBCP said:

Hersheyboy said:

(position rotation at rides,Where to eat for Break,Lenghth Of breaks,days in a typical work week,Starting wage,Perks,Shift Change etc)

Rotations occur every 30 minutes (most often) to 2 hours.

The park has an employee cafeteria near the Scrambler and an additional employee break area serving lower-cost food, with fewer options, behind Stockade in Frontiertown. Break areas are scattered throughout the park. Employees also have the option of purchasing food from a normal food venue, but must consume it in a break area or the cafeteria when working.

Generally speaking, you receive 15 minutes worth of a break for every 2 hours you work. Each shift has a predetermined allotment of breaks based on how long it typically runs. For example, on a standard 10am to 10pm operating day:
-Open to Close = 45min, 30min, 15min
-Open to 8 and 11:30 to Close = 45min, 30min
-Open to 6 and 1:30 to Close = 45min, 15min
-Split = 2 15min breaks, one before and one after your split.
There are additional shift possibilities, but this the most common spread.

Work weeks are 6 days per week. If you need more than 1 day off, you must contract it off prior to starting work, or put in a request off sheet with the department.

Starting wage is minimum wage; $7.40/hour, I believe, as of this season.

Most common shifts include:
-Open to Close
-Open to 8
-11:30 to Close
-Open to 6
-1:30 to Close
-Split (Open to 1:30 and 6:00 to Close)

...and when staffing is very good, the following are possible, depending on how the person who does you scheduling makes the shifts:
-1:30 to 6
-11:30 to 6
-1:30 to 8
-11:30 to 8

Thank you for your well detailed information i think im gonna go for it next season im actually excited right now because i will finally be old enough to work and live there..

But will the rides department hire me if im not 18 until May 30th,2012 or will they just make me wait until im 18 to process in and begin work.

&& i know im asking way too much but whats my chances of getting assigned to those popular coasters like MF,Maverick,Or TTD or even something like raptor or blue streak or do they leave them to the experienced people??

thanks again for your help thus far

could be wrong but I know they hire minors, are they not allowed to be ride ops? I'm not sure what the low age is but I know there are 16 year olds around. not being 18 till that date shouldn't affect you too much.

Not being 18 would prevent you from getting into rides and into housing. There are a (very) few positions that 14-15 year olds can do, and a few more for 16-17 year olds, but rides isn't one of them.

Although in your case if you turn 18 at the end of May, you could always just shoot for an early June start date.

You can get hired for rides and not be 18, although, you will have to turn 18 prior to starting work and moving into housing. There are people constantly processing into the park.

Our rides are generally separated into Areas. We have three separate areas of which you can get hired into. Area 1 includes rides such as Raptor, Blue Streak, maXair, Sky Ride, etc. Area 2 are rides such as Matterhorn Triangle, Magnum, Millennium and Dragster and Area 3 are rides such as Maverick, Shoot the Rapids and Gemini. Each area has their own specific hiring manager. What ride you do get assigned to is all by chance. Last year, I was a first year and contracted to Millennium Force. When you interview, the managers will ask you if you mind heights (if you are on a ride with a lift, chances are you'll have to do a lift walk) and if you prefer to work with kids or adults.

And trust me, it's not the ride that will make your summer great, it's your crew. But say you don't like your crew, or your ride... then there's always a chance that you can be moved to a different ride or even cross train.

A day for me this year at Raptor is something like this: we come in at 8:20am (or 8:00 if you're opening incharge), transfer on our trains, clean the station, queues, etc. We'll cycle the trains, do block checks, test ride... if everything is alright, we'll usually open our queues around 9:00 (Raptor is an early entry ride). You'll choose an opening position, rotate every 30 minutes until it's your turn for a break (breakers don't come in until 11:30). If you're working an O-C, you'll get a 45, 30 and a 15. When you come back from break, you send the next person on break and do this until you go back on break yourself. At Raptor we have 7 or 8 positions, depending on the time of the day. Closing, we'll usually close the queues at 10:08. After the lines gone, we'll start closing duties such as changing locks, cleaning, transferring, etc. Rinse, lather and add some downtime and angry guests and there ya go.

Things may have changed, but previously you had to be 18 or have graduated from high school to live in housing. Rides will hire you if you haven't turned 18 yet, but you either will not be able to start work prior to turning 18, or you will have to work on the Train until you turn 18. I knew at least one person who was 17 and worked on the CP & LE RR until they turned 18 in June during my first season.