Disney Has Laid Off 7,000 Employees in Planned Attempt to Reduce Costs by $5.5B

Photo:AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Disneyhas reportedly laid off 7,000 employees — which CEOBob Igerset out to do in February.

According toVariety, employees of theWalt Disney Companywere given notice Friday in a third round of layoffs.

Most of the cuts came from within the media department, while the park resorts saw minimal layoffs.

A source familiar with the situation toldVarietythat Disney still plans to lay off more jobs overseas in the future.

Disney saw another round of cuts the week of Apr. 24, bringing the total to 4,000.

The 7,000 people laid off constitute 3.2% of Disney’s global employee count of 220,000 as of Oct. 1, 2022, according to the outlet.

The total also represents $2.5 billion of “non-content costs” (including labor cuts) to save, Disney CFO Christine McCarthy told analysts in February, perVariety.

Iger, 72, said of the projected layoffs at the time he announced the cuts: “I have enormous respect and appreciation for the dedication of our employees worldwide.”

For content costs, he said, “We are going to [take] a really hard look at everything we make [in general entertainment] because things in a more competitive world have simply gotten more expensive.”

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Representatives for Disney did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

source: people.com