WALT Disney has announced it will lay off 28,000 employees, mostly at its U.S. theme parks.
Disney cited the parks’ limited visitor capacity and uncertainty about how long the coronavirus pandemic would last as reasons for the layoffs.
The company’s theme parks have taken a major hit from the pandemic.
Disney shut all its parks earlier this year as the virus spread, but only Disneyland in California remains closed.
The layoffs apply to “domestic employees” of which about 67% are part-time.
Disney also has parks in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Paris, which are not affected by the announcement.
Except for Disneyland in California, all of the company’s parks have now reopened, although visitor numbers are limited to allow for social distancing.
Josh D’Amaro, chairman of the parks unit, said in a statement that the company’s problems were “exacerbated in California by the state’s unwillingness to lift restrictions that would allow Disneyland to reopen.” (BBC)
