Disney-Fox: anxiety, game, timeline of layoffs and no benefit of Disneyland on the first day of Mega Company

About 15,000 of the 22,400 21st Century Fox employees woke up with a new employer this morning as Disney's $ 71.3 billion acquisition of Fox's assets officially closed at 00:02 EST last night.

But as the new Disney employees made their way to work, they were reminded of who owned the famous Century City Fox Studios lot, greeted by a large "Welcome To Fox" banner hanging from the main entrances. (photo above)

It's a good old game from the Murdochs who have kept the huge $ 1.5 billion worth of real estate in the lightened Fox's portfolio, while praising much of this property at Disney. for the next 7-10 years.

Nearly all Disney-fied Fox employees remain in their current ranks with some of the top leaders, including Peter Rice and Dana Walden, as well as recently arrived Craig Hunegs – who oversee all television divisions on both sides of the chain. . the merged entities – sharing their time between Fox's offices and those of Disney in Burbank. In addition, Disney CEO Bob Iger should also have an office and presence in Century City.

In the memo "Historic Day for Our Company" sent by reporters, who spent the night after the conclusion of the Disney-Fox agreement, he shared his enthusiasm about the transition and his grand plans for the future.

He also referred to "the difficult work that united our companies" and promised that the company "committed to act as quickly as possible to clarify things" about the impending layoffs, estimated at 4,000 people two sides of the merged company. .

The rating reflects the mixed feelings of Disney employees today: relief from the end of the long merger process, cautious optimism about the future prospects of the new Disney group facing Netflix, Amazon and Apple, and apprehension of the benefits of the integration process.

Uncertainty about the employment prospects of employees of merging companies, particularly in areas where the impact should be significant, such as distribution and business (BA, legal, etc.), raises a lot of concern since the conclusion of the Disney-Fox agreement. announced at the end of 2017.

According to a "Disney Transition Guide "distributed this morning by HR to Fox transplant recipients, staff reductions related to the merger should be completed within the next year.

In addition, for non-contract Fox employees, their compensation will not be immediately compliant with Disney's standards.

As noted above, Fox television executives earn an average of at least 20% more than their Disney counterparts. Disney is known for lower base salaries, although the company is catching up with compensation programs that include stock and bonuses.

According to the guidelines released today, new Disney employees should not receive any salary and "less advantageous" bonuses than they had at Fox until December of 2020.

But for former 21st Century Fox members hoping to get the free and coveted Disneyland passes and use them to take their family to Happiest Place on Earth immediately, they'll have to wait.

According to the HR memo, Disney's traditional benefits, including Disneyland passes and discounts on Disney products, will come into effect for new additions from Fox by the end of 2019. This means that many of those who will be fired during the integration will probably have won. not be able to get a free Disneyland trip before they leave.

But their exit packages remain as generous as previously promised, depending on the length of their tenure in the company.