Visitors to the Disneyland center in California, on March 14.DAVID MCNEW / AFP
The entertainment giant Disney reported late Tuesday night that it will reduce its workforce by nearly 28,000 employees at its theme parks division in the United States.
Behind this drastic decision are the problems facing its resorts: limited attendance and the continued closures of its Disneyland center in California due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Two-thirds of the fired workers are part-time workers, the company stressed in a statement.
Disney closed its theme parks around the world when COVID-19 began to spread earlier this year.
All gradually reopened except for Disneyland, though the company was forced to limit the number of visitors to allow for physical distancing.
"We have made the very difficult decision to begin the process of reducing our workforce in our Parks, Experiences and Products segment at all levels," said Josh D'Amaro, president of the parks unit, in a statement.
The executive cited the parks' limited capacity and continued uncertainty about the duration of the pandemic, which he said was "exacerbated in California by the state's unwillingness to lift the restrictions that would allow Disneyland to reopen."