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Disney is sacking 7,000 employees because Bob Iger is trying some cost cutting

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DailyBiteFeb 09, 2023 | 14:23

Disney is sacking 7,000 employees because Bob Iger is trying some cost cutting

Disney announced 7,000 job cuts. Photo: Disney/DailyO

In comes Robert 'Bob' Iger to helm the Walt Disney Co again, and out go 7,000 employees. The return of Bob Iger as Disney's CEO has translated into much of what investors want, corporate restructuring, cost cutting, and most tragically, layoffs. 

The layoffs: Disney announced that it is planning to lay off 7,000 employees in the US and internationally. 

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  • The 7,000 make up 3% of the media and entertainment giant's total workforce. 
  • There are around 1,66,000 employed in the US and 54,000 employed internationally as of October 1, 2022.  
  • Disney has not announced in which departments the job cuts are happening.

On the other hand, Disney has announced a slew of new projects, mostly sequels, including Zootopia 2, Frozen 3, Inside Out 2, and Toy Story 5.

Major changes: Disney is on a $5.5 billion cost-cutting path.

  • $3 billion of the cost-cutting effort will come from content, excluding sports. Most likely, these are to occur in Disney Plus, the company's streaming platform, which is not performing great. 
  • Bob Iger has also announced that Walt Disney Co will be streamlined into three divisions as part of the restructuring - Disney Entertainment, ESPN, and Disney parks experiences and products.
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Disney's tryst with streaming: Disney+ has seen a subscriber decline and has been running into losses due to heightened competition. 

  • However, Bob Iger has reportedly set his sights on streaming. 
We will take a very hard look at the cost of everything we make across television and film.
- Bob Iger to investors
  • Disney has been accused by activist investor, Nelson Peltz of Trian Partners, of funding its streaming business with its theme-park business.
  • Peltz is fighting for a seat on the board and claims that Disney has failed at succession planning. 

The return of Bob Iger: Bob Iger was the CEO of Disney for 15 years before he stepped down in 2020. However, after his handpicked successor Bob Chapek led a challenging 2-year at Disney, Iger has returned to helm the company. 

Bob Iger at Disney World. Photo: Twitter/Robert Iger

The tech/job winter: Layoffs and hiring freezes have become rampant across various companies across the world as the due to a global recession. The IT sector has been the worst affected. Even in India, tech startups have seen massive layoffs across departments. Companies say this is partly happening due to overhiring during the Covid-19 pandemic and businesses preparing themselves for a recession. 

Last updated: February 09, 2023 | 14:53
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