E-Paper
Disney announces layoffs again, over 300 corporate jobs in US axed as part of its cost-saving initiative
Disney has announced third set of layoffs since May, 2004, slashing over 300 jobs.
In more news of layoffs in United States, Disney has announced a new wave of cuts as part of its cost-saving initiative.
According to Deadline, nearly 300 people have been impacted by the new round of sacking and the number is expected to only rise further. All US-based positions are from across Disney’s corporate operations, including legal, HR, finance and communications.
The news portal stated, those working in other verticals of the business like ESPN, parks and Disney Entertainment are not currently affected.
"We continually evaluate ways to invest in our businesses and more effectively manage our resources and costs to fuel the state-of-the-art creativity and innovation that consumers value and expect from Disney," a Disney spokesperson told Deadline. "As part of this ongoing optimization work, we have been reviewing the cost structure for our corporate-level functions and have determined there are ways for them to operate more efficiently."
The announcement comes just months after Disney downsized its television division by eliminating140 jobs. It made up to two percent of its staff at Disney Entertainment Television. In May, Disney's Pixar subsidiary axed 175 of its employees, or 14 percent of staff.
Disney's dwindling profits
Pandemic impacted Disney badly after which it has been able to survive multiple box office flops like Elemental and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Its Disney+ streaming service and hiked up subscription prices to keep losses to a minimum, hasn't proven to be an effective strategy too. Additionally, the brand's theme parks are struggling post-COVID-19 pandemic and high inflation burden
"The costs of running the theme park will continue to escalate, creating pressures for executives to quickly adjust and evolve their formula for growth," Christina Curtis, founder of Curtis Leadership Consulting, previously told Newsweek.
Since his return in 2022, Disney Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger has cut more than 8,000 jobs to help curb $7.5 billion in costs.
During an earnings call in November, Iger spoke about the company's film struggles in particular.
"It's clear that the pandemic created a lot of challenges creatively for everybody, including for us," the 73-year-old said at the time. “In addition, at the time the pandemic hit, we were leaning into a huge increase in how much we were making and I've always felt that quantity can be actually a negative when it comes to quality. And I think that's exactly what happened. We lost some focus.”
