Cutbacks and Layoffs at Disney?

As a former Disneyland Paris Cast Member it is weird to think about lay offs. Paris is so heavily unionised that the idea of layoffs became unthinkable. The flip side of that in the lean years was that there was a hiring freeze and the seasonal Cast arrived a little later each season and left a little earlier.

The other expertise we gathered was in staffing, making fewer Cast Members go around. So whilst an attraction needed a greeter, maybe it didn’t need a Guest Control position etc. I don’t think Guest safety or satisfaction was affected but it made for long days. Short winter days meant four long working days effectively covering opening and closing of the parks in a shift and then taking three days off.

The attractions that opened in this period were also seemingly built to be “improvable” later… Space Mountain would be a great example of this. Whilst I loved my mountain dearly it wasn’t all that it could have been. There were effects that never got the funding that they needed to be brought into the show.

The upside though was that both the company and we as Cast Members learned a lot in that period. Those of us that were there came up with a better show to cover the gaps, ideas for economical improvements were brought on stream, people got to be better Cast Members from necessity.

interesting reading.

As a former cast member who worked on only CDD it is interesting to hear what happens off season. I would have liked to have stayed " full time "..that was my only regret about my Disney years that I didnt make it more of a career.

Would be interesting to see figures for Prk entrances over the years.

I guess credit crunch is across the board eh!

Disney reports 13% decline in earnings

“The Walt Disney Company as a whole reported a 13% decline in its fourth quarter earnings (fiscal period which ended on September 27). This is a result in downturns it its movie, media and theme park divisions.

Bob Iger, Disney Chief Executive Officer, is quoted as saying "This is clearly a difficult and unpredictable time and, while our businesses aren't immune, the strength of our assets, brands and management team positions us well for the long term."

According to the financial statement, the theme parks and resorts saw business falling by 4% but with a 7% rise in revenue. Labor costs were blamed for some of the losses.

While Disney's theme park attendance was strong in the first half of the year, the recent increases in gasoline and rising airline ticket costs are expected to impact earnings.

In Disney's entertainment division, revenue was down 5%. The downturn is attributed to increased marketing costs and fewer movies being released by the company.”

I pulled the above from various press reports and blog posts. It does not make for great reading but it is not too gloomy.

The Disney blog are pointing out that WDW are rerunning an offer they last ran in 2003. The "Pay for four nights, get seven" is great for Guests but it may show a slow down in bookings for the first half of 2009.

The early, traditionally quieter part of the year, January, February or March, are being promoted with the added offer of avoucher for $200 toward food and souvenirs.

The closing date for the offer - Decmber 20th 2008 - might be a ploy to make sure that they get the resort booked before there is any more bad news for the economy.

Does this fortell any other finacial moves?

FYI: one of the top search results on Google that brings people to After the Mouse.com is "Disney Layoffs 2008"

thats mad!!!

Hey heres a question, we get hundreds of views on our posts but not many posters! Surely all the ex disney community cannot be that shy!

Many looks few posts... it is the way of forums and web communities. On average only around 5% of members of a site post to it's forums.

Disney pinkslips on the table, CFO says

"Other sector biggies have already announced job cuts, and Disney is taking "a hard look" at costs across its divisions amid a potentially long recession, CFO Tom Staggs said here Tuesday, without providing any figures.

He also said TV advertising and theme park attendance trends have further weakened in recent weeks, but theme park hotel room advance bookings have improved a bit amid an aggressive promotion."

Read the full article here.

The Disney Blog reports
During the shareholder meeting, (10/03/09) Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger reported that only about 50 executives accepted the severance package offered to 619 theme park executives. Disney has also laid off a few people directly or encouraged others into retirement.

50 is way lower than the number I heard Disney had been hoping for to get the desired savings. So, unless Disney sees something positive in the economy that most don’t, I’d look for even more layoffs in the coming months.

I have heard from a trusted source in Orlando that moves are underway to ‘encourage’ a few more Execs to go home and look after their gardens.

I have heard recently about layoff happening at Disney. Around 400, so I heard, and mainly backstage people. It is really scary to think about especially when you know people down there and who have been there for years and others who are trying to stay there full time. I pray for all the best to those who have been laid off or are facing that possibility. These times are hard to everyone and with Disney employing over 62,000 people, from around central Florida, I can only imagine what is happening down there.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-bk-disney-world-layoffs-0326...

"...Laughter is timeless.
imagination has no age.
And dreams are forever."
Disney

During the early years Disney(Paris) had severe financial troubles and came to an agreement with the unions to allow up to 2000 castmembers to be laid off. I was one of the unlucky ones and was absolutely devastated. It was the only job I have ever had that put a smile on my face, it was really living the dream and I would go back tomorrow if I could.