Disney Plans To Fire 7000 Employees: Report The layoff decision was announced right after the company's announcement of recent quarterly earnings, while the company also revealed its plan to reorganize the work structure and slash jobs to reduce cost
By Teena Jose
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The mass media and entertainment conglomerate Walt Disney Co, on Wednesday, has announced that it is planning to fire 7000 workers to cut costs across the company, according to a Reuters report. The layoffs reportedly represent an estimated 3.6% of Disney's global workforce.
The layoff decision was announced right after the company's announcement of recent quarterly earnings, while the company also revealed its plan to reorganize the work structure and slash jobs to reduce cost. The shares of Disney 4.7% to $117.22 in after-hours trading, stated the report.
According to Disney's quarterly earnings report, the company saw a slowdown in the subscriber growth compared to its opponent Netflix. Disney Plus only added 200,000 subscribers in the US and Canada, bringing its total to 46.6 million subscribers. On the international front, excluding Hotstar, the streaming service saw an increase of 1.2 million members. Meanwhile, its other platforms, Hulu and ESPN Plus witnessed modest growth in subscriber rate, with 800,000 and 600,000 new subscribers added respectively, as per available reports.
Under a plan to cut costs and return power to creative executives, the company will restructure into three segments: an entertainment unit that encompasses film, television and streaming; a sports-focused ESPN unit; and Disney parks, experiences and products, Reuters added.
The upcoming layoffs at Disney were announced by CEO Iger during a call with analysts. "The reorganization will result in a more cost-effective, coordinated approach to our operations. We are committed to running efficiently, especially in a challenging environment. The company would focus even more on our core brands and franchises and aggressively curate our general entertainment content," said CEO Bob Iger, in a statement.
