It’s not just tech companies that are facing mass layoffs. Earlier this year, entertainment giant the Walt Disney Company announced it would cut 7,000 jobs in a phased layoff comprising three rounds. As CNBC reports, next week will see the second phase of those layoffs begin and it will include job cuts at Disney-owned sports giant ESPN.
In March, the first round of Disney job cuts was initiated by the company, and those cuts impacted its metaverse strategies unit and the company’s Beijing office. The second round of jobs cuts next week will hit ESPN and, as Bloomberg notes, they will also hit about 15% of Disney’s entertainment division staff; they will impact employees who work in television, film, and theme parks.
As for the ESPN cuts specifically, it’s not clear how many jobs will go at the sports broadcaster. However, CNBC says that the cuts will include management and some on-air talent, according to people who are familiar with the matter. In a memo obtained by CNBC last month, CEO Bob Iger noted that the April cuts will see “several thousand” staff reductions.
That same memo revealed that the third and final phase of Disney’s jobs cuts will see impacted staff notified “before the beginning of the summer.”
The Disney job cuts plan was announced shortly after Iger returned to the company as CEO. Disney has said the workforce reduction of 7,000 employees is part of its plan to cut $5.5 billion in costs, $3 billion of which will come from reduced spending on content.
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