LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla., March 31 (UPI) -- The U.S. Army reopened its military-only Walt Disney World resort Wednesday with twice as many hotel rooms.
The Army shut down the Shades of Green resort in 2002 and laid off virtually all of its staff, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
From 60 to 100 members of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 509 were among those laid off.
Despite promises that previous employees would be given hiring preference, only one union member was rehired -- union President David Wilson, a former bartender at the facility.
"They're trying to bust up the union," said Wilson, who clashed frequently with management before the resort was closed.
Not so, said Pete Isaacs, chief operating officer of the agency which operates Shades of Green and other military recreation resorts in Germany, Hawaii and South Korea.
"This is not an attempt at union-busting or to punish this particular union. This decision was based purely on operating and economic analysis," he said.
