Disney to Keep Hiring Freeze as Bob Iger Restructures Company Months After War With DeSantis

BURBANK, Calif. (FLV) – As new Disney CEO Bob Iger begins his second tenure in the company, taking over for Bob Chapek, the company’s hiring freeze is set to remain in place while the new CEO assesses the organizational structure.

“There is no more status quo. But the sun comes up and the world still spins,” Iger reportedly said at a private town hall.

In a memo from Chapek before he was ousted, the company planned to initiate a hiring freeze, layoffs and cost cuts, with the company’s stock share value falling around 38% in 2022. Iger said he has no plans to change that.

“It felt like it was a wise thing to do in terms of the challenges, and at the moment, I don’t have any plans to change it,” he said.

As CEO, Chapek took a centralized approach to company decision-making. Iger said it will take time to redo the structure of Disney, which he says will be done in conjunction with other executives.

Under Chapek, Disney took reputational fire and hits during the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ left-wing campaign against the Florida government and Gov. Ron DeSantis for passing a new law protecting children from grooming and implantation of sexual ideology, regardless of orientation.

HB 1557, the Parental Rights in Education Act, does not use the term ‘gay’ in the law and applies across all sexual orientations. It prevents classroom instruction from being centered around sexual orientation or gender identity for grades K-3.

Florida’s new Senate and House are supermajority Republican, and leaders have indicated the K-3 age range for protections may expand as parental rights and children’s safety grow more important to the public.

“I think if we have the supermajority we’re looking for in the house and the senate, we may be able to expand that bill,” Passidomo told Florida’s Voice before the November elections.

“We have made great strides in recent years to defend and expand parental rights in education,” Passidomo said to the new chamber. “Moving forward, we are going to make sure that any decision that involves a minor allows the parents at the table.”

House Speaker Paul Renner also said the legislature is set to “respect parental rights” and keep children safe.

“We will continue to reward our best teachers and staff, respect parental rights, and expand educational freedom. By providing more funding and flexibility, we will deliver a bright future to Florida’s next generation,” he said.