Disney World may lay off more than 11,000 employees in Florida due to COVID-19 pandemic

Orlando: Walt Disney World says it plans to lay off more than 11,000 unionized workers because of the new coronavirus, bringing the total number of pandemic-related job casualties at the Florida resort to almost 18,000 positions.

Disney World said in a letter to state and local leaders on Thursday that the 11,350 union workers — mostly part-timers — will be laid off at the end of the year.

Company officials previously had said that another 6,400 non-union Disney employees in Florida would lose their jobs.

Earlier this week, 720 Disney World actors and singers were laid off since many of the live entertainment shows at the Florida resort have gone dark, according Actors’ Equity Association, the labour union representing the performers.

The layoffs are part of a decision by The Walt Disney Co. last month to eliminate 28,000 positions in its parks division in California and Florida because of the pandemic.

Disney’s parks closed last spring as the coronavirus began spreading in the US. The Florida parks reopened this summer with restrictions on how many people could be in the parks at any given time and new requirements for social distancing and mask-wearing.

The California parks have yet to reopen because of restrictions by the state of California.