Disney will furlough workers as theme parks stay shut during coronavirus epidemic

Coronavirus has shut down Disney parks. Now the company announced it is starting the process of furloughing some employees.

Disney said in a statement that starting April 19, it will begin putting some workers on furlough, Variety reported.

Disneyland and Walt Disney World have been shut down during the coronavirus pandemic, and there is no set date for when the parks will reopen.

In a statement, the company said the coronavirus pandemic is “having a devastating impact on our world with untold suffering and loss.”

“Disney employees have received full pay and benefits during this time, and we’ve committed to paying them through April 18, for a total of five additional weeks of compensation,” the company said in a statement. “However, with no clear indication of when we can restart our businesses, we’re forced to make the difficult decision to take the next step and furlough employees whose jobs aren’t necessary at this time.”

Disney did not say how many employees will be placed on furlough, CBS Los Angeles reported. Employees will still have full health care benefits while furloughed, according to the news outlet.

Disney Parks, Experiences and Products has about 177,000 cast members, which is what Disney workers are called, CNBC reported. Non-union park employees, except those whose roles or projects are “crucial to maintaining park operations,” face furloughs, according to an emailed statement from Disney.

“This reality has been sobering to all of us,” executives wrote in a letter to staff Thursday, according to CNBC. “As difficult as this decision was, we know it was the right one to help protect our cast members, our guests and our communities.”

Additionally, Disney said it will stop charging people who have an annual pass and refund any payments made while the parks have been closed, according to the company’s website.

“Effective April 5, 2020, we will automatically stop and waive all upcoming monthly payments while the theme parks are closed,” Disney said. “We will also retroactively refund payments made between March 14 through April 4, 2020.”

Many passholders were furious that the park was continuing to charge them while they couldn’t use their passes, McClatchy News reported.

“It’s a very scary and uncertain time that we are all in right now and the fact that one of the largest companies in the world isn’t offering to help its loyal customers is absolutely appalling,” Alison Raposa, a Disneyland passholder from Irvine, told The San Bernardino Sun. “I have been on the phone with different companies all week trying to see what options they can offer to help in this situation and so far all of them have been sympathetic and have offered some sort of relief. Disney is the only one who hasn’t.”