mightynine
Well-Known Member
I'm trying to recall when Disney lost money on the Parks during the last recession, anyone want to help me out on this one?
This is a honest question, not being snarky, I promise!
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Disney plans hiring freeze, some jobs cut......
- Thread starter Laketravis
- Start date
This is a honest question, not being snarky, I promise!
Epcot82Guy
Well-Known Member
I can vouch that there were serious talks of taking at least Epcot down to partial week operations back in 2002 after the 2000 crash and 2001 events. There were many days where attendance was barely at or below daily operating costs. Obviously, that's a different time and attendance level. But, Disney was taking it on the chin back then.
There is also the DVC issue to deal with. If there were a legitimate recession, vacation ownership is often the first to go. And, that could leave Disney in a lurch if you had even a moderate DVC firesale where Disney wants to keep the value of the product (new members/direct add ons) high. They have already stripped out so many benefits from resale they don't have a lot of meat to cut there before you hit bone. Not saying we're there by any means. Rather, it is a highly susceptible area if people suddenly need to cut costs or sell assets for any price to cover other costs.
el_super
Well-Known Member
Probably 2020.... technically.
But the issue with undervaluing the parks isn't really the same. After the 2008 recession, Disney prioritized attendance with the idea that stuffing the parks with as many guests as possible was the key to revenue growth. In that model, having APs and discounted admissions and promoting them heavily was a good idea, because as long as the park was crowded every single day, you could make money on selling popcorn buckets and expensive cupcakes.
The problem though, is that eventually you hit a wall where you can't keep stuffing people into the parks. The guests become miserable because of the crowds, wait times are sky high and if admissions are cheap enough that people are making multiple visits per year, they are going to get burned out on the place.
My re-valuing the product, and raising prices, Disney is betting that people would be willing to pay more for the better experience, and having fewer people in the park is generally better for everyone.
mightynine
Well-Known Member
Yet they are doing that right now.
el_super
Well-Known Member
Yeah the parks still have been busy. It's been counter-intuitive because this surge in attendance is occurring despite price increases.
If prices are still going up, while attendance is also still going up, it shows that the product was really underpriced to begin with.
If today's price increases don't have a noticeable effect on the attendance, I'd imagine there will be another price increase before too long.
TP2000
Well-Known Member
I don't think Disney parks have ever stopped hiring the front-line, entry-level CM's. During the big layoffs of '09 when the Parks got rid of hundreds of Dockers-clad managers on both coasts, an 18 year old kid could still wander in to Casting and within hours get a job bussing tables at Tomorrowland Terrace.
The layoffs and cutbacks are coming to salaried jobs, and some hourly administrative roles in cubicle farms. Think the white collar employees working in office parks in Celebration and Burbank, not the kid in the polyester uniform saying "Ahoy, mateys!" on the unload dock at Pirates of the Caribbean.
With the exception of a global pandemic in 2020, Disney's parks in America have never stopped hiring unskilled hourly labor to flip burgers in Tomorrowland, sweep up trash in Epcot, or push buttons at Mr. Toad.
In a memo about the hiring freeze and layoffs, Chapek noted that executives anticipated “some staff reductions”, but did not elaborate upon the scope of the layoffs. So, that begs the question – where are the layoffs coming from, and will the theme parks division be affected?
As of publish time, Disney World has not filed a required notice with the state of Florida for any layoffs. State law requires a 60-day advance notice, which is what Disney did when they laid off more than 10,000 Cast Members at the Walt Disney World Resort. This means that any potential layoffs would come in 2023, but a report from the Orlando Sentinel suggests that Disney World has not even begun discussions of any layoffs with the largest Cast Member union – the STCU.
Will Announced Cast Member Layoffs & Hiring Freeze Affect Walt Disney World?
Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond
blogmickey.com
Disone
Well-Known Member
Especially after what I did not hear today.Standing on this affirmation is about as safe of a bet as betting on the longevity of Daisy Ridley’s career
Elijah Abrams
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
I was thinking that Disney could just sell off 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures, and 20th Television, while keeping FX and NatGeo.
Sirwalterraleigh
Premium Member
You're not thinking in four quadrants.
matt9112
Well-Known Member
Comcast baited them hard on that sale…than stole sky under there noses. Hilarious really.
To sell now is to admit it was a giant waste of capital.
Disone
Well-Known Member
Thank you. Here we agree. I don't believe the cuts will be nearly as deep but My concern is not limited to those that guests see. It's sad for when any WDW CM loses their job due to a layoff.
Disone
Well-Known Member
This is somewhat good news, however for Walt Disney World the law applies for layoffs of 500 or greater. I think anyway.In a memo about the hiring freeze and layoffs, Chapek noted that executives anticipated “some staff reductions”, but did not elaborate upon the scope of the layoffs. So, that begs the question – where are the layoffs coming from, and will the theme parks division be affected?As of publish time, Disney World has not filed a required notice with the state of Florida for any layoffs. State law requires a 60-day advance notice, which is what Disney did when they laid off more than 10,000 Cast Members at the Walt Disney World Resort. This means that any potential layoffs would come in 2023, but a report from the Orlando Sentinel suggests that Disney World has not even begun discussions of any layoffs with the largest Cast Member union – the STCU.
Will Announced Cast Member Layoffs & Hiring Freeze Affect Walt Disney World?
Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond
I do think there will be some layoffs at Walt Disney World.
I don't think it's going to be massive and I don't think if you are hourly / union / or both at Walt Disney World you have anything to worry about.
I do worry about some of the more vulnerable salaried positions. Hopefully none of this will come to fruition. Fingers crossed.
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Sirwalterraleigh
Premium Member
They don’t need to “fire” in parks…attrition takes care of that.
But anyone around here even remember 2-3 years of slow parks/low morale?
…you may be in for a treat if not. And I’m not talking a “viewing party”
What I dont understand is this…
AP vs Fla resident AP. To me an out of town AP has to spend money imo either by making multiple trips and paying for rooms or being DVC etc those people should be generating revenue and the revenue Bob wants… a local AP with their discounted rate to me is absolutely dirt cheap and worth every penny and to me thats who they no longer want bc lets face it for most part those people are not buying souvenirs and barely spending any real money in the parks. Would it be that crazy to eliminate any discount for locals and imo even if they did paying under 1500 for an entire year max is still cheap for the amount of times people can easily go along with discounted perks… & please dont start comparing prices to other theme parks etc bc we all know whether we want to admit it there really is no comparison at the moment. No matter how much this place has diminished.
AP vs Fla resident AP. To me an out of town AP has to spend money imo either by making multiple trips and paying for rooms or being DVC etc those people should be generating revenue and the revenue Bob wants… a local AP with their discounted rate to me is absolutely dirt cheap and worth every penny and to me thats who they no longer want bc lets face it for most part those people are not buying souvenirs and barely spending any real money in the parks. Would it be that crazy to eliminate any discount for locals and imo even if they did paying under 1500 for an entire year max is still cheap for the amount of times people can easily go along with discounted perks… & please dont start comparing prices to other theme parks etc bc we all know whether we want to admit it there really is no comparison at the moment. No matter how much this place has diminished.
Bingo... when you see the billions they are spending on content to try and build the streaming service it is amazing they haven't lost even more money. Frankly they just don't have the catalog of content to really support a streaming service like they seem to want to provide. They would probably have been better off doing a takeover of netflix if they wanted to be in the streaming business because trying to create enough content on their own is going to bankrupt them. It is as if they are churning out as much content as they would have done in ten years for the movies in a couple of years but not getting the opportunity to have any big blockbusters that can cover those costs. Now throw in the more and more people have learned to game the streaming services by only subscribing to one for a couple of months, binging their shows on it then swapping to a different one like Netflix or Apple where they binge for a bit before switching again... When consumer go that road it makes a subscriber much less profitable.
Jrb1979
Well-Known Member
Cause they want the out of town guests to pay full price for their visits.
matt9112
Well-Known Member
Than why do they give essential free days away to people from the uk with 14 day tickets?
I think they would rather offer deals to out of town folks knowing they will spend significantly more in the parks once they arrive. Locals even ones who might buy merch etc simply cannot on average spend the same. They don’t need a hotel for example etc etc.
Tha Realest
Well-Known Member
If I had to guess it's likely due to the uproar it would cause in the surrounding community (citizens, elected officials, what not) if that benefit was taken away. I live in a large metro area that covers two states, and our local football team's tickets (regular season and playoffs) give priority to residents of the county where the team is located. Not sure if the combativeness over the RCID has affected the company in this regard, but I imagine if they took away the FL resident discount it would cause a massive outcry and blowback