Thousands of job cuts have already affected Disney employees recently, and thousands more will be happening this week.
©Disney | Walt Disney Company Headquarters
CEO Bob Iger announced in February that The Walt Disney Company was implementing a plan to cut $5.5 billion in annual costs, and part of that plan involved about 7,000 job cuts across the company. The first wave of layoffs and job cuts happened in March, and the next wave (and the biggest one) is happening this week (the week of April 24th). Now, we have more details about those cuts.
As part of the first wave of layoffs and job cuts, Disney essentially eliminated the metaverse division of the company, laying off about 50 Imagineers in the process. The job cuts starting this week will affect “about 15% of the staff in [Disney’s] entertainment division.” Bloomberg reported that this will impact departments ranging from TV to film to theme parks.
©Disney
According to Variety, Disney plans to reach 4,000 layoffs overall this week. Notifications will be handed out to those impacted by the job cuts by Thursday, April 27th. These cuts will affect positions in several different divisions of the company, including Disney Entertainment; ESPN; Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products; and others.
Walt Disney Company Headquarters ©LA Times
The third (and final) round of job cuts will likely begin before summer, bringing the total number of job cuts to 7,000. This represents around 3.2% of Disney’s total workforce.
Disney executive Josh D’Amaro indicated previously that frontline, hourly operations jobs at Disney Parks and Resorts will not be affected, so the Cast Members you see inside Disney World will probably not be impacted by job cuts.
Disney World Cast Members at The Confectionery
Co-chairman of Disney Entertainment Alan Bergman and Dana Walden sent a memo to Disney employees on Monday, stating that “these are hard decisions and not ones we take lightly – but every decision has been made with considerable thought, and we are doing everything we can to make sure this process is conducted with respect and compassion.” The memo said, “While we are confident that these efforts will better position us for the future, we realize this all takes a toll. We want to acknowledge the impact of this moment and simply reiterate our appreciation for all of you and the passion and dedication you’ve brought to the work we do every day.”
Bob Iger ©New York Post
Variety published the memo in full, and you can read it here:
Team,
As you all know, a few weeks ago the company began notifying employees whose roles are impacted as part of our overall business realignment and cost-savings efforts. We wanted to share that notifications will continue in many areas of the company over the next several days. In addition, restructuring in various businesses will continue for the next couple of months, and we do anticipate there will be further impacts before the summer, as previously shared. Each team is in a different place in this process, and your leaders will be sharing more context for your group soon.
These are hard decisions and not ones we take lightly – but every decision has been made with considerable thought, and we are doing everything we can to make sure this process is conducted with respect and compassion. The senior leadership teams have been working diligently to define our future organization, and our biggest priority has been getting this right, rather than getting it done fast. We recognize that it has been a period of uncertainty and thank you all for your understanding and patience.
This is a time of transition for Disney, and these changes affect everyone, whether or not your role is impacted. We are committed to supporting you through this period and encourage you to reach out to your leader or HR partner with any questions or for guidance, as needed.
While we are confident that these efforts will better position us for the future, we realize this all takes a toll. We want to acknowledge the impact of this moment and simply reiterate our appreciation for all of you and the passion and dedication you’ve brought to the work we do every day. And for those who will be leaving the company, please know that your contributions are valued and appreciated – you have all played a meaningful role in making Disney what it is today.
With gratitude,
Alan & Dana
For more information on the recent Disney layoffs, check out our posts below.
- Huge Project CANCELLED at Disney; 50 Imagineers Laid Off
- How Job Cuts Will Impact Disney (And Who Won’t Be Affected)
- “There Will No Doubt Be Challenges Ahead” — Disney CEO Bob Iger Gives Huge UPDATE on Job Cuts
Stay tuned to DFB for more updates.
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These decisions and announcements are never easy on any leader or manager within any company. My thoughts reach out to all impacted, both those directly being laid off and those surviving, as work load and survivor’s guilt will increase in the near future, plus the people having to make these decisions and announcements. The best advice I ever received early in my management career is if you want to minimize the pain and heartbreak of doing layoffs, avoid over hiring during the boom years. Keep your organization lean from the beginning, and delegate responsibilities to keep jobs interesting and challenging to offset the fewer layers within the org chart. Your company will be more nimble and competitive also.
Disney’s gross profit for the twelve months ending December 31 2022 was $28.195 billion dollars. A 12.49% increase year-over-year. Disneys annual gross profit for 2022 was $28.321 billion dollars. A 27.07% increase from 2021. As you can see, they aren’t making enough money. People say the magic is gone. I agree and disagree with that. Inside the parks, the cast members still make magic happen. The executives that make the decisions as to the cost of everything, they don’t care about the customers or the magic, they only care about money. All these layoffs prove it….