Disney employees aren’t ready to go back to work

Disney is ready to open its massive theme parks in California and Florida, but many of its employees are not.

The company plans to open Walt Disney World in Orlando in stages starting July 11 and Anaheim’s Disneyland about a week later.

Unions representing workers are pushing the Walt Disney Company to postpone those openings over concerns it isn’t doing enough to protect employees from the coronavirus, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Union officials for 17,000 Disneyland workers went as far as asking California Gov. Gavin Newsom to pressure Disney to push back its plans.

The letter claimed that Disney had “rejected or not yet responded to important safety protocols” and said “we do not know if the resort can be operated safely.”

Tens of thousands of employees, along with members of the public, have signed petitions to delay the openings as well.

The company appears eager to open and stem the losses it is suffering. Disney reported a 10 percent year-over-year drop in revenue in the second quarter, or a roughly $1 billion loss.

Executives said that half of that loss came during two weeks when both Disney World and Disneyland were closed. That comes out to $16.6 million per day during that period, according to the Orlando Business Journal.

To assuage the concerns of the public and local officials, at both parks Disney is planning to limit capacity, cancel crowded events and take customers’ temperatures at entry. [WSJ] — Dennis Lynch