After keeping thousands of employees on furlough and paying their health benefits since April, Disney is laying off 28,000 employees in the US. The job cuts will come mainly from its theme parks, but associated businesses including its hotels, cruise lines, and retail stores will be hit as well. Around two-thirds of the affected employees are part-timers, according to a memo sent to employees on September 29, although executives and salaried roles will also be hit.

Josh D'Amaro, the chairman of Disney Parks, blamed the layoffs on prolonged park closures and capacity limits at those parks that have managed to reopen. He wrote in the memo: "We've cut expenses, suspended capital projects, furloughed our cast members while still paying benefits, and modified our operations to run as efficiently as possible, however, we simply cannot responsibly stay fully staffed while operating at such limited capacity."

The company was able to open its theme parks in Hong Kong, Japan, Shanghai, Paris, and Florida, albeit operating at much lower capacity than previously. But its California locations, which provide most of its parks revenue and account for more than 80,000 jobs in the area, remain closed. Disney has lost nearly US$4.5 billion of operating income in the last six months of the COVID-19 pandemic due to the closure of its parks and associated operations around the world.

The affected workers will receive some severance benefits, including access to 90 days of job placement services. According to the memo, Disney is also entering talks with unions.

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