Disney conducting layoffs

[_19disnA]

And doesn't Amazon usually hire a lot 'seasonal' help to handle the increased shipping demand around the Holiday season?

 

[declansdad]

I would hope Disney is laying off the people who decided to degrade the park experience. That would be a net positive.

As for Amazon laying off 10,000 is no big deal. It will bring them down to 2021 employment levels.

I'm sure it's a big deal to the 10,000 being laid off.

 

[Ms.Minnie]

I would hope Disney is laying off the people who decided to degrade the park experience. That would be a net positive.

As for Amazon laying off 10,000 is no big deal. It will bring them down to 2021 employment levels.

To your first point I agree. I heard this morning that ticket prices are going up again for the parks, no surprise there. I would think at some point the mass would say enough is enough and not pay the price. That would get upper management's attention.

To your second point of 10,000 people being laid off not being a big deal. I have to disagree with you, and I bet if you were one of those people being laid off you would disagree too. I know this can be spun any number of ways but a lay off is a layoff and not good for the person losing his or her job.

And doesn't Amazon usually hire a lot 'seasonal' help to handle the increased shipping demand around the Holiday season?

This is typical of a lot of retail businesses at this time of year but is it going to happen this year? Jeff Bazos just made the announcement in the past few days about the big layoff, so I don't see how you layoff and hire at the same time. I guess you could higher lower paid workers to fill orders but if the net result is still 10,000 fewer jobs that is still a negative for jobs in the end.

 

[bcla]

To your first point I agree. I heard this morning that ticket prices are going up again for the parks, no surprise there. I would think at some point the mass would say enough is enough and not pay the price. That would get upper management's attention.

To your second point of 10,000 people being laid off not being a big deal. I have to disagree with you, and I bet if you were one of those people being laid off you would disagree too. I know this can be spun any number of ways but a lay off is a layoff and not good for the person losing his or her job.



This is typical of a lot of retail businesses at this time of year but is it going to happen this year? Jeff Bazos just made the announcement in the past few days about the big layoff, so I don't see how you layoff and hire at the same time. I guess you could higher lower paid workers to fill orders but if the net result is still 10,000 fewer jobs that is still a negative for jobs in the end.

Different skill sets. An electronics or software developer isn’t doing the same thing as a warehouse sorter. They have to compete for the former with Silicon Valley companies?

 

[Ms.Minnie]

Different skill sets. An electronics or software developer isn’t doing the same thing as a warehouse sorter. They have to compete for the former with Silicon Valley companies?

Yes, I agree but the point is layoffs are going on in the tech sector/social media. I do believe Facebook is laying off also... The seasonal jobs if they happen are just that, seasonal. The long-term outlook appears to be bleak.

 

[MillauFr]

Yes, I agree but the point is layoffs are going on in the tech sector/social media. I do believe Facebook is laying off also... The seasonal jobs if they happen are just that, seasonal. The long-term outlook appears to be bleak.

Unemployment is at historically low levels. The economy expanded at 2.9% last quarter.

 

[wabbott]

Posted this on another thread. Seems to be pertinent to this discussion also.

https://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/news/2022/11/15/florida-disney-cost-cuts-jobs-freeze.html?utm_source=sy&utm_medium=nsyp&utm_campaign=y
What do Disney’s cost cuts mean for Orlando theme parks?
By Richard Bilbao – Digital Producer/Senior Staff Writer, Orlando Business Journal
Nov 15, 2022

The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) surprised some on Nov. 11 when it announced plans to cost cuts via measures that include a hiring freeze and possible job cuts.
The company owns and operates one of the region's largest assets in Walt Disney World — Central Florida's largest single-site employer, with nearly 70,000 Orlando workers — that has four local theme parks: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Disney also owns two area water parks, Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon, as well as several themed hotels, golf courses, a camping resort, timeshare properties, ESPN Wide World of Sports and the Disney Springs dining/shopping/entertainment district.

Walt Disney World alone is the top generator for visitation to Orlando, with more than 36 million people going through its turnstiles in 2021, according to the 2021 Aecom and Themed Entertainment Association Theme Index and Museum Index Report. Thus, any major changes could have ripple effects to the local region.

---

Why this matters: Disney is a huge economic driver in Orlando via construction, supply-chain needs and tourism. Cost-structure plans can have local effects on the workforce.

---

What do we know so far about Disney's cuts?​

Disney CEO Bob Chapek, via a memo obtained by CNBC, said the company would limit head counts with a hiring freeze and expects some staff reductions.
“We are limiting headcount additions through a targeted hiring freeze,” Chapek said in a memo, said CNBC's report. “As we work through this evaluation process, we will look at every avenue of operations and labor to find savings, and we do anticipate some staff reductions as part of this review," said another part of the Disney (NYSE: DIS) memo obtained by CNBC.
No other details were shared, and Walt Disney World executives were not available to provide further comment.
Still, the uncertainty on where Disney may focus cost reductions brings up the possibility of what affect it will have on the theme parks segment. That segment has been a highlight of the company, earning $7.425 billion in revenue in its fourth quarter ending Oct. 1, up 36% from $5.45 billion for the same quarter last year, according to the report.

Will Disney's cost cuts include theme park workers?​

John Gerner, managing director with Leisure Business Advisors LLC, a Virginia-based theme park consulting firm, said the theme parks likely aren't much on the radar when it comes to cuts. He said the plan is an acknowledgment that Disney has segments that can use better cost management to improve certain situations.
"This freeze should help preserve current jobs within the theme park division, but could involve transferring some cast members from less important positions to more important ones when other cast members quit," Gerner told OBJ.
As of now, Disney has not informed local Walt Disney World workers of possible cuts, said Eric Clinton, president of Unite Here Local 362, a local Disney workers union. Clinton does not expect the company's cost cuts to affect local theme park operations workers or recent hires. "In addition, our contract calls for schedules and hours to be worked by seniority as well as any reductions in the workforce to be done the same," Clinton said.

How may Disney's cost cuts affect theme park additions?​

In fact, the theme parks may be on the lighter side of any ill effects of the cost cuts, David Heger, an analyst with Edward Jones who follows Disney, told Orlando Business Journal. Heger expects Disney's cuts to fall on the shoulders of its media segment.
"[The] cost-cutting efforts might impact the Disney media and entertainment distribution segment more than the parks and experiences segment because that side of the business faces risks to ad spending in a slower economic environment, the box office has not returned to pre-pandemic revenue levels, and it faces very high content costs to continue growing the Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu streaming services," he said.
He said the parks and experiences segment's revenue has recovered well and is performing better than before the pandemic. Thus, he said he doubts Disney would look at projects such as new attractions or expansions as a way to pinch a few pennies.
"A majority of Disney's capital spending is targeted at the parks and the company typically sees a good return on investment from adding new attractions," Heger said.
Meanwhile, Disney continues to invest in its local theme parks to keep tourists coming back. For example, the Tron Lightcycle/Run coaster at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom theme park will debut in spring 2023. That Disney attraction has riders on the iconic Lightcycles from the Tron film and racing through the computerized world. The Tron coaster is inspired by the Tron Lightcycle Power Run at Shanghai Disneyland.
Disney also is transforming its Epcot theme park that will develop new attractions, such as "Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana" attraction, and will revamp other areas of that park.

 

[DLgal]

Posted this on another thread. Seems to be pertinent to this discussion also.

https://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/news/2022/11/15/florida-disney-cost-cuts-jobs-freeze.html?utm_source=sy&utm_medium=nsyp&utm_campaign=y
What do Disney’s cost cuts mean for Orlando theme parks?
By Richard Bilbao – Digital Producer/Senior Staff Writer, Orlando Business Journal
Nov 15, 2022

The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) surprised some on Nov. 11 when it announced plans to cost cuts via measures that include a hiring freeze and possible job cuts.
The company owns and operates one of the region's largest assets in Walt Disney World — Central Florida's largest single-site employer, with nearly 70,000 Orlando workers — that has four local theme parks: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Disney also owns two area water parks, Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon, as well as several themed hotels, golf courses, a camping resort, timeshare properties, ESPN Wide World of Sports and the Disney Springs dining/shopping/entertainment district.

Walt Disney World alone is the top generator for visitation to Orlando, with more than 36 million people going through its turnstiles in 2021, according to the 2021 Aecom and Themed Entertainment Association Theme Index and Museum Index Report. Thus, any major changes could have ripple effects to the local region.

---

Why this matters: Disney is a huge economic driver in Orlando via construction, supply-chain needs and tourism. Cost-structure plans can have local effects on the workforce.

---

What do we know so far about Disney's cuts?​

Disney CEO Bob Chapek, via a memo obtained by CNBC, said the company would limit head counts with a hiring freeze and expects some staff reductions.
“We are limiting headcount additions through a targeted hiring freeze,” Chapek said in a memo, said CNBC's report. “As we work through this evaluation process, we will look at every avenue of operations and labor to find savings, and we do anticipate some staff reductions as part of this review," said another part of the Disney (NYSE: DIS) memo obtained by CNBC.
No other details were shared, and Walt Disney World executives were not available to provide further comment.
Still, the uncertainty on where Disney may focus cost reductions brings up the possibility of what affect it will have on the theme parks segment. That segment has been a highlight of the company, earning $7.425 billion in revenue in its fourth quarter ending Oct. 1, up 36% from $5.45 billion for the same quarter last year, according to the report.

Will Disney's cost cuts include theme park workers?​

John Gerner, managing director with Leisure Business Advisors LLC, a Virginia-based theme park consulting firm, said the theme parks likely aren't much on the radar when it comes to cuts. He said the plan is an acknowledgment that Disney has segments that can use better cost management to improve certain situations.
"This freeze should help preserve current jobs within the theme park division, but could involve transferring some cast members from less important positions to more important ones when other cast members quit," Gerner told OBJ.
As of now, Disney has not informed local Walt Disney World workers of possible cuts, said Eric Clinton, president of Unite Here Local 362, a local Disney workers union. Clinton does not expect the company's cost cuts to affect local theme park operations workers or recent hires. "In addition, our contract calls for schedules and hours to be worked by seniority as well as any reductions in the workforce to be done the same," Clinton said.

How may Disney's cost cuts affect theme park additions?​

In fact, the theme parks may be on the lighter side of any ill effects of the cost cuts, David Heger, an analyst with Edward Jones who follows Disney, told Orlando Business Journal. Heger expects Disney's cuts to fall on the shoulders of its media segment.
"[The] cost-cutting efforts might impact the Disney media and entertainment distribution segment more than the parks and experiences segment because that side of the business faces risks to ad spending in a slower economic environment, the box office has not returned to pre-pandemic revenue levels, and it faces very high content costs to continue growing the Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu streaming services," he said.
He said the parks and experiences segment's revenue has recovered well and is performing better than before the pandemic. Thus, he said he doubts Disney would look at projects such as new attractions or expansions as a way to pinch a few pennies.
"A majority of Disney's capital spending is targeted at the parks and the company typically sees a good return on investment from adding new attractions," Heger said.
Meanwhile, Disney continues to invest in its local theme parks to keep tourists coming back. For example, the Tron Lightcycle/Run coaster at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom theme park will debut in spring 2023. That Disney attraction has riders on the iconic Lightcycles from the Tron film and racing through the computerized world. The Tron coaster is inspired by the Tron Lightcycle Power Run at Shanghai Disneyland.
Disney also is transforming its Epcot theme park that will develop new attractions, such as "Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana" attraction, and will revamp other areas of that park.

TL : DR

The parks are safe from layoffs.

 

[Ms.Minnie]

Unemployment is at historically low levels. The economy expanded at 2.9% last quarter.

I hope it stays that way in 2023.

 

[DCLMP]

I'm sure it's a big deal to the 10,000 being laid off.

It's a recession when a friend gets laid off it's a depression when you get laid off. If it's a stranger I guess you just don't care.

 

[DCLMP]

Unemployment is at historically low levels. The economy expanded at 2.9% last quarter.

That can change quickly and that's what they want.

 

[DeeBee3]

Unemployment is at historically low levels. The economy expanded at 2.9% last quarter.

Bond markets are telling us otherwise. And housing...

 

[DCLMP]

Bond markets are telling us otherwise. And housing...
View attachment 719326

There are a lot of indicators that are telling us otherwise, but the bond market is everything.

 

[MICKIMINI]

Although this isn't unusual for this current time (other major corporations are doing the same), you think these CEOs and CFOs would have seen the writing on the wall regarding economy. A downturn has been happening for months. I know the parks haven't felt it, but the overall economy is not good and people are really going to feel it come spring/summer.

Oh, sure they did. Self preservation is what keeps them smiling and saying foolish phrases that most people can't seem to see through. This economy has been in downturn mode no matter whose lying lips were saying otherwise (gotta give those politicians credit as there is no amount of spin they can't regurgitate).

DH and I spent the winter/spring listing our 2042's and DVC bought most of them at near top market price so even they drank the kool aid. We rebought, but 2057 so moved up the ladder by 15 years.

From my personal opinion when lips of these executives (most) and politicians (nearly all) are moving, well you know the rest...

The magic is wearing off even for this die hard 49 1/2 year WDW crazy, DVC and AP holder...we're here now. Tinker bell needs to come back from coffee break and spruce the place up a bit!

 

[DCLMP]

Oh, sure they did. Self preservation is what keeps them smiling and saying foolish phrases that most people can't seem to see through. This economy has been in downturn mode no matter whose lying lips were saying otherwise (gotta give those politicians credit as there is no amount of spin they can't regurgitate).

DH and I spent the winter/spring listing our 2042's and DVC bought most of them at near top market price so even they drank the kool aid. We rebought, but 2057 so moved up the ladder by 15 years.

From my personal opinion when lips of these executives (most) and politicians (nearly all) are moving, well you know the rest...

The magic is wearing off even for this die hard 49 1/2 year WDW crazy, DVC and AP holder...we're here now. Tinker bell needs to come back from coffee break and spruce the place up a bit!

Layoffs are a lagging indicator, but for many people it won't feel "real" until they see people lose their jobs. By that time it's too late to financially and mentally prepare yourself.

 

[DLgal]

Layoffs are a lagging indicator, but for many people it won't feel "real" until they see people lose their jobs. By that time it's too late to financially and mentally prepare yourself.

"They" have been predicting a recession at end of 2022 to mid 2023 for a WHILE now. Everyone should already be prepared for it and be ready for layoffs. My husband is transitioning out of the military by mid 2023 and we are already preparing to have to live off savings for 12-18 months. He wants to get a civilian corporate level management job but now is clearly a bad time for that.

 

[DCLMP]

"They" have been predicting a recession at end of 2022 to mid 2023 for a WHILE now. Everyone should already be prepared for it and be ready for layoffs. My husband is transitioning out of the military by mid 2023 and we are already preparing to have to live off savings for 12-18 months. He wants to get a civilian corporate level management job but now is clearly a bad time for that.

Most people don't understand basic economics much less what's currently happening.

 

[DLgal]

Most people don't understand basic economics much less what's currently happening.

Well, they will be in for a rude awakening.