Layoffs at Walt Disney World and other divisions of WDC

[tizzo]

The theme parks are profitable, why would they trim jobs at the resorts, that makes no sense.

I would think they would dump people in the Disney Film area than the theme parks.

Jimmy Thick- First NextGen big brother, now this...

The idea is to keep them profitable. The reality is that we're in a challenging economy, and there is nothing to suggest that it's going to get any better in the next several years. I personally have been surprised that Disney, and the entertainment industry in general, have done as well as they have over the past few years. It seems that people who can't pay their mortgages have still managed to find money for the movies and even to visit WDW. That's great - but it can't last forever.

I remember thinking (and maybe writing) at the time that the Fantasyland Expansion in particular was a shrews business decision. It came at a time when the economy was tanking, meaning that labor and materials would be cheap, and attendance was surely expected to decline as well what with everyone who didn't actually lose their job having to worry and/or plan for losing it. But that presupposed that the economy would start to turn around at some point before the end of this decade. This was something that seemed distinctly possible - even probable - as recently as three months ago. But that is no longer the case.

 

[plutofan15]

Do you have any idea how a corporation works?

I know how ESPN's finances works since my spouse is a financial director at the company. Any other questions?

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

I know how ESPN's finances works since my spouse is a financial director at the company. Any other questions?

Really my wifes a paediatric specialist but I dont like kids so I wont be treating any.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

You can always rely on fan boys to give their favourite corporation unconditional support. Accountants, know the cost of everything but the value of nothing.

 

[ScoutN]

I know how ESPN's finances works since my spouse is a financial director at the company. Any other questions?

Ahh there's the issue. You understand espns and not the entire company's. problem pin pointed!

 

[ToTBellHop]

I know how ESPN's finances works since my spouse is a financial director at the company. Any other questions?

LOL.



Sorry.

 

[MandyMouse]

Perhaps the cast-cleaning should start with the suits at the top. Less of them could be eliminated to make the most impact on the numbers. How about zero bonuses?

Personally, I'm feelin' my brand loyalty eroding slow but steady.

That's always people's answer to these types of situations, but realistically the "suits" are never going to take a pay cut. As much as we love Disney they aren't any different then any other corporation. At the end of the day they are trying to make money. You also have to consider all of the companies that make up the WD Corp. The parks are only one part of the Disney empire and letting a few people go isn't going to stop anyone from visiting the parks, so they'll do it!

 

[sweetpee_1993]

That's always people's answer to these types of situations, but realistically the "suits" are never going to take a pay cut. As much as we love Disney they aren't any different then any other corporation. At the end of the day they are trying to make money. You also have to consider all of the companies that make up the WD Corp. The parks are only one part of the Disney empire and letting a few people go isn't going to stop anyone from visiting the parks, so they'll do it!

You're right. In the grand scheme of things what difference it make. Kinda like politics...it is what it is & doesn't really matter what any of us think. You're either a suit or you're not. It's all business.

I won't say that these layoffs will directly result in people not going to WDW but reducing front line cast *can* have an affect on guest experience. It's the sum of all the slashing in many areas that has impacted MY experience at WDW and is THE reason we aren't spending our vacations at WDW right now. If our current chosen vacations (multiple DCL cruises per year) are adversely impacted by cast cuts on the ship I have no issue with taking my $10k - $20k per year to the parks or cruise competition. I'm about quality for my dollar.

So, no, maybe not directly, but in a way these cuts certainly can contribute to would-be vacationers to go elsewhere.

 

[Duckberg]

Waiting for further developments, this was a big topic at this forum 3 years ago!

 

[MarkTwain]

Sounds like some of these layoffs might be to our advantage. From Al Lutz' column today:

Bob [Iger] also had some bad news to deliver during his December visit, by presenting the news that up to a 10% reduction in headcount was expected from the Parks & Resorts division this fiscal year. The immediate plan will be to take a hard look at the bloated administration buildings in both Anaheim and Orlando, where the cubicle farms have been allowed to fatten up again in the last few years as major park expansion was underway in both DCA and Magic Kingdom Park. The front line Cast Members won’t be touched in the upcoming layoffs, and the front line management in busy hotel or theme park operations teams will also be spared. (Especially at DCA.)

But there’s a lot of folks working 9 to 5 jobs in back offices who have a connection with the daily operation of a theme park that is tenuous at best, if not entirely cut off and pointless. Here’s a tip; if your current cubicle job in TDA allowed you to take off the Christmas and/or New Year’s weeks to lounge around at home, instead of working the very busiest days of the year at the parks and hotels, then you have reason to be concerned. But if you were out in the parks or hotels working on those busy holidays away from your families (because you realize you work for a theme park and know that’s part of the gig), then your job is pretty safe.

Hopefully with some of the corporate fat trimmed from the administration buildings, some decisions can actually be made around this place?

 

[jlsHouston]

You can always rely on fan boys to give their favourite corporation unconditional support. Accountants, know the cost of everything but the value of nothing.

this is a very old saying..

 

[jlsHouston]

Well..this is what I think about layoffs..sometimes they are necessary and they are about the fastest way to cut expenses/overhead in a company large or small. But they suck. It sucks to be the one to decide you have to cut people, it sucks to be the one to tell those who are getting canned this is your last day or week, it sucks to see your UI tax rate jump, it just kind of sucks that you couldn't figure a better way to manage your business and the bottom line without layoffs.

 

[sparky03]

So who's going to fix Splash Mountain once they lay all these people off? Volunteers? Unpaid interns? Slaves?

 

[ParentsOf4]

So who's going to fix Splash Mountain once they lay all these people off? Volunteers? Unpaid interns? Slaves?

Didn't you hear? They are offering that as a FP+ experience.

 

[ToTBellHop]

So who's going to fix Splash Mountain once they lay all these people off? Volunteers? Unpaid interns? Slaves?

Br'er Gator and Br'er Frog, I heard. But, only when they themselves are fully functioning. Even Disney knows better than to rely on hopping Br'er Rabbit.

Truly, it saddens me to see Splash in the condition it is in. To see this happen to such a masterpiece of an attraction is pretty devastating, joking aside. At least Mansion is well looked after. A single shining star.

 

[The Duck]

Sounds like some of these layoffs might be to our advantage. From Al Lutz' column today:



Hopefully with some of the corporate fat trimmed from the administration buildings, some decisions can actually be made around this place?

I hate the thought of anyone losing their job but if it has to be done, this sounds realistic. Most of the big shots aren't going anywhere anytime soon and it would be criminal to cut the little guys anymore than they already have. All that's left is middle-management.

 

[Captain Neo]

Gotta pay for all that Nextgen R&D somehow

 

[aristo_cat]

I was just coming on here to say that when I was there on Christmas 2012 and back on New Year's Eve 2011, they were embarrassingly short-staffed and I can't imagine it getting much worse while maintaining professionalism and courtesy to the customer. I walked out of a few lines for food and beverage while at Epcot center on NYE and that was a good $30 worth of revenue they lost from me because I didn't want to stand in a line. And to be honest, I'm not an econ whiz, but I'm pretty sure that at something like $80 minimum per ticket, millions if not billions of guests each year, I think that Disney's bottom line can afford to keep people employed. To avoid some lengthy debate along ideological lines that reaches far beyond the scopes of a Disney Fan forum, I'll simply say that what more businesses (big and small) need to focus on is working smarter. There are a lot of employees that do indeed slack off and effectively steal from their employers by not working nearly as hard or even at the minimum of what is asked of them. So fire those people or train them better. But I've never understood the arbitrary "hey ,find me 10% from anywhere!" tactic.

But the comments about overhearing cast members "socializing" really pains me because humans are social beings. I'm sure everyone here socializes at work. Imagine what kind of day you'd have if you didn't talk to your co-workers. I don't fault anyone for chatting with their neighbor as long as they are doing their job correctly and not ignoring customers.

 

[flynnibus]

But I've never understood the arbitrary "hey ,find me 10% from anywhere!" tactic.

It can be explained as simply 'detachment'

When the managers aren't really engaged in the true grind of what the business is.. they become detached and everything becomes faceless and process focused. Not stressing the 'non personal' aspect but simply they become detached from 'what really is happening' when it comes to who does what and how things actually get done. Instead of knowing themselves, they rely on others to tell then how things are going, etc. That abstraction from direct contact and knowledge makes it extremely difficult to make true surgical movements. Instead things become sweeping changes.. or change to align to the top of the ladder, rather than change to align how the actual work gets done.

 

[disneyflush]

I work for a large manufacturing corporation in management and once a month all office staff (~250 people) go down to the floor and take over a machine from one of the operators to give them an extended lunch (1 hour instead of 30 minutes) and take the pulse of the front lines. Its not exactly the same as there are roughly 2-3 office bees for every 1 normal line operator but the line workers appreciate it and it alleviates some of the disconnect between the groups. I'd love to see TDO take an approach like this and have management work the front lines in randomly assigned areas once a quarter or so for a few hours to get a better feel of the actual park and not just percentages.