The Walt Disney Company has initiated a third round of layoffs that will see more than 2,500 workers lose their jobs.
The proposed cuts will affect most of the major businesses of the roughly $185 billion company, which was recently split into entertainment, ESPN, and parks and resorts.
They’re not targeting a specific section, although parks and resorts will remain largely untouched, according to the Deadline.
This comes after Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed in March the company’s plans for three rounds of layoffs to generate $5.5 billion in savings.
Disney is cutting its workforce by 7,000 and the second round of cuts in April was the most brutal, cutting 4,000 jobs.
The Walt Disney Company has initiated a third round of layoffs that will see more than 2,500 workers lose their jobs
This comes after Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed in March the company’s plans for three rounds of layoffs to generate $5.5 billion in savings
Disney’s share price is down 7.9 percent so far this month to trade at $91.57 a share
The fresh wave of layoffs that began Monday will see more than 2,500 workers lose their jobs at the company.
Previously, television was the hardest hit, but this time there are only minor job cuts.
Media companies are grappling with the effects of the ongoing writers’ strike, which is bringing film and television development and production to a standstill.
Disney employs around 220,000 people worldwide, including around 170,000 in the United States.
There will also be staff cuts in the other two cooperation areas ESPN and Parks, Experiences and Products.
However, frontline staff at the theme parks are not expected to lose their jobs.
The company announced plans for layoffs and other austerity measures to deliver $5.5 billion in cost savings during a first-quarter earnings conference call in February.
Management finalized the details of the new structure in the weeks that followed, and CEO Igor told employees in a memo in March that there would be three rounds of layoffs as the company worked to reduce its workforce by 7,000.
“This week we begin notifying employees whose positions are impacted by the company’s staffing cuts,” he wrote.
“Executives will be relaying the news directly to the first group of affected employees over the next four days.”
“A second, larger round of notifications will take place in April and will include several thousand more job cuts. We expect to be able to start the final round of notifications before the start of summer to reach our target of 7,000 jobs.”
It is not known exactly how many jobs were cut in the first round, but 4,000 people lost their jobs in the second round, which began on April 24.
The company warned its employees that a third round of layoffs could be expected before the start of the summer.
And there are rumored to be a number of smaller cuts in the coming months.
To save even more money, the company has removed dozens of titles from its streaming platforms.
The company has adjusted to new leadership since Iger returned in November after retiring from the same position in 2020.
His appointment was prompted by a stock price plunge that began after the streaming division suffered $1.5 billion in losses for the quarter ended Oct. 1.
Disney is cutting its workforce by 7,000, and the second round of cuts in April was the most brutal, cutting 4,000 jobs
It is expected that no frontline workers at the theme parks will lose their jobs in the latest round of cuts
In February, he announced the biggest restructuring since his return to reduce costs: $3 billion for content (excluding sports) and the remaining $2.5 billion for non-content.
Under his new leadership, he has restructured and returned authority to a number of creative executives – including top lieutenants Dana Walden and Alan Bergman, both of whom are considered candidates for his CEO position within the next two years.
ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro will lead this segment, and Josh D’maro will remain in control of Disney Parks.
Disney has endured a rough patch since the pandemic began, but it still managed to post huge gains in the first quarter of this year.
Revenue increased 8 percent to $23.5 billion compared to the first quarter of 2022 and profit increased 11 percent to $1.3 billion.
But the share price is down 7.9 percent so far this month to trade at $91.57 a share.