As the pandemic continuously ravaged most industries, the American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate, The Walt Disney Company, plans to lay off an estimated 32,000 employees in the first half of 2021.
According to a report, in a filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday, Disney stated that the company would be terminating the employment of around 32,000 individuals, primarily at its parks.
The said figure includes the number announced by Disney Parks in September that 28,000 employees will be laid-off, wherein an estimated two-thirds of them were taking it as part-time.
Based on the SEC filing of the company, they shared that due to the current climate, including the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, and drastic changes in the environment in which they are operating, their company has generated efficiencies in their staffing, which includes limiting hiring to critical business roles, reductions-in-force, and furloughs.
They also added in the filing that as part of their actions, the employment of approximately 32,000 employees primarily at Parks, Products, and Experiences would be terminated in the first half of fiscal 2021, Variety reported.
Based on the previous Business Insider report, the theme parks division of Disney lost $2 billion in operating income in the quarter to June, which made it the hardest-hit segment of the company.
The global health crisis threat forced the company to close mainly their parks, including California's Disneyland and Walt Disney World in Florida.
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While few businesses were only beginning to reopen over the summer slowly, California's Disneyland remained shuttered.
According to Business Insider, The damage caused by the pandemic at the company extends beyond their theme parks as the filing also references the temporary closure of their retail stores, suspensions of their stage play, and the docking of their cruise ships.
The filing also contains the company's financial struggle in terms of their television and film production for most of the year as to when they started to continue filming again; the process was slower and more expensive due to coronavirus safety measures.
And due to the temporary closure of cinemas, the company has also brought some titles, like 'Mulan' straight to streaming and delayed the movies' theatrical release due to the restrictions.
As a result also of lacking new releases, the company also experienced fewer opportunities to generate income from its merchandise, causing its sales to drop as well, Independent reported.
Disney shared that collectively, their impacted businesses have historically been the source of most of their revenue.
The company also warned that its income might continuously fall even after the restart of its operations due to the experienced economic downturn caused by the pandemic, which means that its customers will also be spending less money on their goods and services.
The revenue that Disney will be making during the restart will also depend on the demand that its theme parks, resorts, experiences, cruise ships, and theatrical releases will be making.
The company also expects higher incremental costs with the introduction of new health and safety measures.
The income of the company's entertainment division by September also dropped to 45% year-on-year, while revenues from its parks were also down to almost $7 billion compared to last year.
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