It has been over a month since Disney has temporarily shut down. With little idea of when its parks and resorts will reopen to the public, Disney had to furlough 100,000 theme park and hotel employees on Monday until the coronavirus pandemic settles.
In a report by The Financial Times, Disney's recent layoff, which consists of about half of the brand's theme park and resort workforce, could save Disney about $500 million a month in salaries as the COVID-19 crisis continues to halt business.
Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando alone had to lay off 70,000 of its 75,000 employees. These workers will have to rely on Florida's Unemployment Assistance program, which has been criticized for paying only $275 a week for 12 weeks.
According to NBC News, however, about 26,000 of these workers are members of UNITE HERE, which means they will be automatically enrolled in the unemployment program.
"Disney's announcement that they have reached an agreement with the state of Florida for Cast members to be auto-enrolled into the Unemployment Assistance program is terrific news!" UNITE HERE said in a statement.
Additionally, Disney Chairman Bob Iger had reportedly given up his $3 million salary for the rest of the year while Chief Executive Bob Chapek allegedly "will forgo half" of his $2.5 million base salary to keep the brand afloat during this time.
"The COVID-19 pandemic is having a devastating impact on our world with untold suffering and loss, and has required all of us to make sacrifices," the company said in a statement.
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