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Disney will take more time off in its Disneyland marquee, with coronavirus cases on the rise worldwide and no sign from California officials that the Anaheim theme park will reopen at any time in the near future. The news was announced in a note from Disneyland President Ken Potrock to staff on Monday (read it in full below).
In September, Disney announced it would lay off 28,000 employees at its US theme parks, the segment of the business hardest hit by the pandemic. As today, the cuts have taken place at the level of executives, employees and hours, although most of the blow – or 67%, depending on the company – will go to part-time workers.
“As you know, we have already made the heartbreaking decision to lay off thousands of our actors on both coasts,” he wrote. “We expected to be able to open our parks in Anaheim, given our proven ability to operate with responsible health and safety protocols, as we have done in all of our other theme parks around the world, but unfortunately , it was not the case.”
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The theme park closed on March 13 as the pandemic worsened in the United States. Other Disney theme parks were able to open under restricted conditions, notably at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando. Although Disney announced the reopening of select Disney California Adventure restaurants and stores on November 19 and ahead of Downtown Disney last week, the rest of the park remains closed and “recently released state guidelines put us in limbo regarding a schedule for reopening for the foreseeable future, ”Potrock said today.
A spike in cases in Europe last week forced Disneyland Paris to shut down again, the latest obstacle to reopening the theme park segment. Disney in its second-quarter earnings call in May, which estimated the estimated impact of COVID-19 on its Parks, Experiences and Products segment’s operating profit to be around $ 1 billion.
Here is today’s memo from Potrock:
Dear team,
Since Disneyland Resort closed in March, nothing has been more important than the full reopening and the return to work of our Cast Members. This is why it is with a heavy heart that we find ourselves in the untenable situation of having to institute additional holidays for our executive, salaried and hourly casting.
After nearly eight months, our parks and hotels remain closed, and while we have had some successes – like the opening of the Downtown Disney District in July, upcoming stores and restaurants on Buena Vista Street, and the announcement of today of the reopening of Disney Vacation Club units – the recently released state guidelines put us in limbo regarding a reopening schedule for the foreseeable future.
As you know, we have already made the heartbreaking decision to lay off thousands of our actors on both coasts. We expected to be able to open our parks in Anaheim, given our proven ability to operate with responsible health and safety protocols, as we have done in all of our other theme parks around the world, but unfortunately this was not the case.
We will start communication today with the relevant stakeholders. As per what was put in place in April, Cast on leave will be able to:
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- maintain coverage of health and insurance benefits, with the company paying both weekly employer and employee contributions;
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- choose to use some or all of their available paid time off (vacation and floating holidays), if eligible;
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- access state unemployment insurance benefits; and continue to progress toward their educational goals with the Disney Aspire Educational Program if they are already enrolled.
These decisions and actions are tough – and we’re committed to helping our teams get through this and, most importantly, getting people back to work where we can.
I urge Cast Members who need support to use the Furlough Resource Center, as well as additional resources provided by the company including LifeCare and the Employee Assistance Program (EAP). You can also call Global Human Resources Operations at 321-939-7000 (Monday to Friday, 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday to Sunday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.).
While the near term is tough as we continue to navigate these turbulent times, I promise you that we will continue to work tirelessly to reopen the Resort and get our Cast Members back to work, and that my optimism for our bright future continues to grow. to be strong.
I want to thank each of you for your resilience and determination in these difficult and unpredictable times. I am constantly in awe of our incredible cast and can’t wait to see the day we can celebrate the reopening of Disneyland Resort.
With gratitude,
Ken potrock
President
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