Disneyland and Disney World lay off 28,000 employees amid pandemic struggles - OCR/SCNG

[SuddenStorm]

I really wish I had known in advance that the times I went to Disneyland in January, February, and March would be the last times the parks would be operating for a year or more, and also the last times that I would be getting mostly full experiences at the parks for a very long time to come.

I would have treasured those visits so much more if I knew that time was basically the end of an era for the Disneyland Resort. Even if the parks reopen next Spring, I fear it will be years before they return to their former glory.

I skipped Jungle Cruise and Pirates during my late February trip- if I had known I would have made sure to do those at least once if not twice.

And, I only rode Splash Mountain once as opposed to the 3-5 times I usually ride it. Talk about regrets....

 

[SplashGhost]

I skipped Jungle Cruise and Pirates during my late February trip- if I had known I would have made sure to do those at least once if not twice.

And, I only rode Splash Mountain once as opposed to the 3-5 times I usually ride it. Talk about regrets....

At this point, we don't know if Splash Mountain will ever reopen. I have come to realize that I took Disneyland for granted. I mean, I knew things could change, but I never would have expected anything like what happened. To make matters worse, plans to change my favorite ride (Splash Mountain) was announced during the closure.

2020 proves that we never really know what might be gone the next day. It isn't just that Disneyland closed for a long time, it is that it will be a radically different experience once it reopens.

 

[TP2000]

I skipped Jungle Cruise and Pirates during my late February trip- if I had known I would have made sure to do those at least once if not twice.

And, I only rode Splash Mountain once as opposed to the 3-5 times I usually ride it. Talk about regrets....

Speaking of rides, I got some more information from a little cocktail thing I went to tonight to wind down the big weekend out here in the desert. And it's gotten chilly tonight in Palm Springs, so good thing the gossip was good. Disneyland and The SoCal Gays are certainly two demographics that are closely integrated. This info is from someone involved with creating Avengers Campus at DCA...

• Avengers Campus is basically done. It has a "hand off" (the nomenclature repeatedly used, and apparently the big day the project is officially complete in Disneyspeak) scheduled for December 5th. On that date the Spiderman ride is all done and ready to operate, the shops and restaurants are all done and fully ready to host paying customers, and the land itself is completed right down to the last landscaping shrub and streetlamp and bench. On December 5th WDI officially "hands off" the ride and the land to the TDA operators for the next 50 years, and it's up to Disneyland Resort to run it and operate it thereafter. December was the "new" opening date they were aiming for earlier this summer, and TDA and WDI both stuck with it in the hopes the parks could be reopened by now. In just under a month the new land will be all finished and polished up and ready to go!

• That's the good news. The bad news is that DCA won't be reopening for at least four months after December 5th, perhaps six months or longer. There's a ton of CM's being trained and ready to work on the new ride, staff the new stores and restaurant, do the Character show, etc. And those CM's have entirely new salaried management teams of Dockers-clad managers ready to lead the charge. But all those CM's in Avengers Campus have got nothing to actually do in December, and no one to do it for. This is part of the problem TDA has with trying to keep these types of CM's employed and engaged with their employer (Disneyland Resort) without losing them over the next four to eight months or however long it may be until DCA can open as a theme park instead of just open as a limited dining/shopping mall. Does TDA keep paying all these CM's to work in a new land that is closed and without any paying customers? Or do they furlough everyone in Avengers Campus before Christmas and then hope that they all show up when recalled next June when the park may be able to reopen? A huge gamble for TDA, and one that will cost them a lot of money.

I'll say it again... You can't expect a company to keep paying employees to not work at a business with no customers. You've got to be able to sell a product at a profit in order to stay in business. Even if you are a big, evil company like Disney (paging Dr. Moreno!), you still have to be able to sell a profitable product to consumers in a free market in order to keep paying your employees to create and sell the product.

A big, sprawling company like Disney can extend that timeline out further than a donut shop or a little clothing boutique, but eventually the basic economics catch up to even the big, evil businesses. You either sell your product at a profit, or your business dies. Disneyland can't keep not selling their product forever.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Chapek is perhaps preparing for the much anticipated Wall Street public earnings call for Q4 happening in mid November.

That's this Thursday, Nov 12, at 4:30p ET.

Walt Disney Company fourth quarter 2020 financial results to be released mid-November

https://www.wdwmagic.com/other/walt-disney-company/news/05oct2020-walt-disney-company-fourth-quarter-2020-financial-results-to-be-released-mid-november.htm

forums.wdwmagic.com

 

[TP2000]

What I find interesting, is a lot of my friends who work at the 3rd party table service locations in DTD are saying that sales are very close to pre covid days now, I don’t understand why Disney hasn’t opened some restaurants within the grand and DLH to spread out some of the crowds and to make some revenue. My server friends in WDW are also saying that numbers are about the same or even better then pre covid at some of the location within wdw.

Things were definitely hopping in Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage over the weekend. And that's in Riverside County which is in the naughtiest Purple Tier, where things are supposed to be the most restrictive. They aren't.

 

[DCBaker]

"Disneyland plans to furlough additional employees in the wake of COVID-19 reopening guidelines from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration that have left California theme parks “in limbo” for the foreseeable future.

Disneyland president Ken Potrock announced the furloughs of executive, salaried and hourly workers on Monday, Nov. 9 in a letter to cast members, Disney parlance for employees.

“Since Disneyland resort closed its gates in March, nothing has been more important than fully reopening and getting our cast members back to work,” Potrock wrote. “That’s why it is with heavy hearts we find ourselves in the untenable situation of having to institute additional furloughs for our executive, salaried and hourly cast.”

“We expected to be able to open our parks in Anaheim, given our proven ability to operate with responsible health and safety protocols as we have in all of our other theme parks around the world, but unfortunately this has not been the case,” Potrock wrote.

Furloughed Disneyland employees will maintain health and insurance benefits and are eligible for state unemployment benefits. Employees can use some or all of their paid time off at the start of the furlough period.

“These decisions and actions are difficult – and we are committed to helping our teams through this and, most importantly, getting people back to work where we can,” Potrock wrote. “While the near term will be challenging as we continue to navigate in these turbulent times, I promise you that we will continue to work tirelessly to reopen the resort and get our cast members back to work, and that my optimism for our bright future continues to be strong. I want to thank each and every one of you for your resiliency and resolve during these challenging and unpredictable times.”

Disneyland announces additional furloughs as state guidelines leave theme park ‘in limbo’

Disneyland president Ken Potrock announced the furloughs of executive, salaried and hourly workers on Monday, Nov. 9 in a letter to cast members, Disney parlance for employees.

www.ocregister.com

 

[JustinSt]

Things were definitely hopping in Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage over the weekend. And that's in Riverside County which is in the naughtiest Purple Tier, where things are supposed to be the most restrictive. They aren't.

With the announcement for the DVC wing opening at the grand Dec. 6th, I think there’s a good chance my location will reopen.

 

[TP2000]

• Furloughs. More are coming. TDA brought back too many theme park managers in June thinking the Resort was going to reopen by July. Now they are swimming in managers who have very little to do. A new round of furloughs are imminent, sending many of the managers who were brought back this past summer back into the unemployed furlough pool. Just in time for Christmas!

Well, what do you know, the info I heard on Saturday was right. I owe someone another drink now!

"Disneyland plans to furlough additional employees in the wake of COVID-19 reopening guidelines from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration that have left California theme parks “in limbo” for the foreseeable future.

Disneyland president Ken Potrock announced the furloughs of executive, salaried and hourly workers on Monday, Nov. 9 in a letter to cast members, Disney parlance for employees.

 

[MarvelCharacterNerd]

I really wish I had known in advance that the times I went to Disneyland in January, February, and March would be the last times the parks would be operating for a year or more, and also the last times that I would be getting mostly full experiences at the parks for a very long time to come.

I would have treasured those visits so much more if I knew that time was basically the end of an era for the Disneyland Resort. Even if the parks reopen next Spring, I fear it will be years before they return to their former glory.

I had a similar thought this past week. I realized that whenever the park returns, it won't be the park it was when I last saw it a few days before closing. It suddenly hit me that it was an ending that I needed to mourn but hadn't recognized because we didn't have that moment of emotional closure before the physical closure.

It reminded me of 2016 when the Mad T Party closed in DCA. That was the end of an entertainment era for myself and my friends - both those on the stage and off. We knew then that the parks would never be the same again for us, but at least we got to say good-bye.

Thankfully, 2017 brought a lot of new joy for me at DCA in the Marvel offerings like the character meet and greets and the GOTG: Awesome Dance Off which filled a lot of the entertainment hole in my heart.

When the parks reopen, I don't know if any of the cast performers or character friends who have made these last several years so... yes, magical... for me will return. Which means that unlike with the Mad T Party, I didn't get the chance to say good-bye. And that loss, on top of the loss of those regular joyous interactions, is what really hit me over the past few days. And I'm still not sure I'm ready to face it, although I can finally recognize it. But ultimately, I may not know just how much of a loss it will be until the parks reopen and I see who is there and who is not.

 

[1HAPPYGHOSTHOST]

I had a similar thought this past week. I realized that whenever the park returns, it won't be the park it was when I last saw it a few days before closing. It suddenly hit me that it was an ending that I needed to mourn but hadn't recognized because we didn't have that moment of emotional closure before the physical closure.

It reminded me of 2016 when the Mad T Party closed in DCA. That was the end of an entertainment era for myself and my friends - both those on the stage and off. We knew then that the parks would never be the same again for us, but at least we got to say good-bye.

Thankfully, 2017 brought a lot of new joy for me at DCA in the Marvel offerings like the character meet and greets and the GOTG: Awesome Dance Off which filled a lot of the entertainment hole in my heart.

When the parks reopen, I don't know if any of the cast performers or character friends who have made these last several years so... yes, magical... for me will return. Which means that unlike with the Mad T Party, I didn't get the chance to say good-bye. And that loss, on top of the loss of those regular joyous interactions, is what really hit me over the past few days. And I'm still not sure I'm ready to face it, although I can finally recognize it. But ultimately, I may not know just how much of a loss it will be until the parks reopen and I see who is there and who is not.

Sometimes there are no happy endings.

 

[TP2000]

Sometimes there are no happy endings.

Yeah.

I imagine @Darkbeer can't say much, but the people who filled me in on all the above on Saturday, including the impending mass furloughs that actually played out on Monday, were equally as worried about Anaheim's future without an operating convention center. There's something weird going on up in Sacramento in the way that no one in SoCal's tourism industry can get Sacramento to communicate anything of any substance besides the occasional Tweet or long-winded and puffed-up press conference.

 

[The Mom]

Please stay on topic. Thank you. Although a vaccine is somewhat related, it really should be discussed in the multiple threads dedicated to Covid itself - rather than the economic ramifications of the pandemic.

 

[Darkbeer1]

Yeah.

I imagine @Darkbeer can't say much, but the people who filled me in on all the above on Saturday, including the impending mass furloughs that actually played out on Monday, were equally as worried about Anaheim's future without an operating convention center. There's something weird going on up in Sacramento in the way that no one in SoCal's tourism industry can get Sacramento to communicate anything of any substance besides the occasional Tweet or long-winded and puffed-up press conference.

Great summary TP2000. I enjoyed your posts the last few days. The inside info seems good.

And yes, I am very limited to what I can post, and while I would love to say more, the limits are understandable, though frustrating.

But then there is short-term views vs long-term views, and the long-term looks decent.

But the current status is hurting the area in so many ways.

I use my lovely wife as a sounding board, and she talks about moving out of the city and California due to her frustrations with Sacramento, and she works for the County of Orange, and Dr. Clayton Chau is her boss.

At last night's Planning Commission meeting, David See, the city's Principal Planner is stepping down after nearly 24 years of service. Sounds like he took the golden parachute the city is offering to cut its payroll, and he isn't the only one....

So while the city has a new council (Denise Barnes conceded on Facebook on Sunday), they will be faced with a lot of challenges. The County Board of Supervisors remain 4 to 1 in business friendly members. A couple of US House seats should switch from Democratic to Republican. Most of the State Propositions went the way of not paying more taxes and freedoms in employment and other matters.

But the city can easily refinance, and there is the Angel Stadium sale proceeds to help in the short term.

Anaheim is in a better place than some urban cities. Their outlook is scary.

But then it is the little guys that are really paying the price, both small businesses and folks who have lost their jobs. Those folks have my sympathies, and I wish I had the answer to helping them out of their current situation.

In the last few weeks, my life has been filled with lots of phone calls and small zoom meeting of local residents and business owners, and lawyers. Their comments do give me hope, and Lisa has calmed down and not talking about leaving the State.

Now to figure out the short term course, which is very hard without guidelines to figure which paths to take.

 

[TheDisneyDaysOfOurLives]

Okay, here's the info I got at two Palm Springs events yesterday from several people connected to Disneyland and Anaheim's business community in various ways. I trust the insight from these people a great deal. They know what they are talking about. In no particular order;

• The Disneyland Resort is bleeding money every day. Nothing they are doing is working to create a profit for Disney. Operating Downtown Disney is costing Disney money, but at least keeps the third-party tenants kind of happy and avoids lawsuits from them. Operating Buena Vista Street will not earn them any real money, it will only retain a pool of CM's and keep them employed, because it would be more expensive to rehire them once the parks begin to actually reopen. The entire strategy right now is simply "Survival Mode", trying to maintain a pool of tenured CM's to build off of once the parks reopen. Knott's is said to be in the same boat; their recent food festivals made no profit, it just keeps the park barely operating and a core group of employees still connected. Knott's is simply trying to survive until next summer.

• Both Disney and their allies in Anaheim City Hall have switched into Survival Mode. This current situation is simply disastrous for everyone involved. It's becoming clear that the best case scenario for reopening is Disneyland reopens Spring, 2021 at 25% capacity, and that scenario now pencils out as an economic disaster for Anaheim and for Disney. TDA also realizes reopening might not be until next summer, a full 15 months after Disneyland closed. The good news for non-Disney hotels is that Disney will only reopen with the Grand Californian, and that news was purposely released to City Hall and the community to try and help Disney's neighbors plan for the future. TDA is regrouping and trying to figure out a strategy to make it to next spring/summer. Anaheim is scrambling to try and prevent the Resort District from losing all of its small businesses, plus some large anchors like GardenWalk and corporate hotels around the convention center, with the Resort District being taken over by the homeless. But Anaheim is also trying to do the same with its dying downtown area now overrun by homeless as well (see Carnegie Plaza mess).

In the short-run, Disney and Knott's are making enough money that it helps offset some of their fixed costs. Those fixed costs are going to be there no matter what (utilities, taxes, debt payoff, etc.) so they can either have some money come in that will offset those fixed costs (but not all of them, obviously). If the variable cost (the labor, supplies, etc.) weren't being covered, there's no way Disney would be operating. So while losing money, they're probably losing less money then if they did nothing at all. This will be their short-run for a while and as long as it helps them cover some of their fixed during that time frame, they won't change it up until they can re-open.

 

[Lilofan]

Great summary TP2000. I enjoyed your posts the last few days. The inside info seems good.

And yes, I am very limited to what I can post, and while I would love to say more, the limits are understandable, though frustrating.

But then there is short-term views vs long-term views, and the long-term looks decent.

But the current status is hurting the area in so many ways.

I use my lovely wife as a sounding board, and she talks about moving out of the city and California due to her frustrations with Sacramento, and she works for the County of Orange, and Dr. Clayton Chau is her boss.

At last night's Planning Commission meeting, David See, the city's Principal Planner is stepping down after nearly 24 years of service. Sounds like he took the golden parachute the city is offering to cut its payroll, and he isn't the only one....

So while the city has a new council (Denise Barnes conceded on Facebook on Sunday), they will be faced with a lot of challenges. The County Board of Supervisors remain 4 to 1 in business friendly members. A couple of US House seats should switch from Democratic to Republican. Most of the State Propositions went the way of not paying more taxes and freedoms in employment and other matters.

But the city can easily refinance, and there is the Angel Stadium sale proceeds to help in the short term.

Anaheim is in a better place than some urban cities. Their outlook is scary.

But then it is the little guys that are really paying the price, both small businesses and folks who have lost their jobs. Those folks have my sympathies, and I wish I had the answer to helping them out of their current situation.

In the last few weeks, my life has been filled with lots of phone calls and small zoom meeting of local residents and business owners, and lawyers. Their comments do give me hope, and Lisa has calmed down and not talking about leaving the State.

Now to figure out the short term course, which is very hard without guidelines to figure which paths to take.

Some people I know have made to move to get out of CA. Some going to Austin and Dallas TX areas.

 

[truecoat]

Some people I know have made to move to get out of CA. Some going to Austin and Dallas TX areas.

I'm sure it'll be cheaper for them but Texas is no California.

There might be some exodus of people and business but it'll be negligible in the grand scheme of things.

 

[1HAPPYGHOSTHOST]

In the short-run, Disney and Knott's are making enough money that it helps offset some of their fixed costs. Those fixed costs are going to be there no matter what (utilities, taxes, debt payoff, etc.) so they can either have some money come in that will offset those fixed costs (but not all of them, obviously). If the variable cost (the labor, supplies, etc.) weren't being covered, there's no way Disney would be operating. So while losing money, they're probably losing less money then if they did nothing at all. This will be their short-run for a while and as long as it helps them cover some of their fixed during that time frame, they won't change it up until they can re-open.

He literally said they are not making sny money off these events.

 

[TheDisneyDaysOfOurLives]

He literally said they are not making sny money off these events.

And you literally don’t know economics works.

 

[1HAPPYGHOSTHOST]

And you literally don’t know economics works.

Do you? If you think these events are keeping the company alfloat you are high.

 

[TheDisneyDaysOfOurLives]

Do you? If you think these events are keeping the company alfloat you are high.

Not what I said.