Universal Orlando extends nearly 5,400 furloughs, signaling slow recovery
ORLANDO, Fla. - Nearly 5,400 furloughed employees at Universal Orlando Resort will not return to work anytime soon, a notice filed with the state revealed on Wednesday.
Universal Orlando Resort filed a notice on September 4th stating that 5,389 furloughed employees will remain out of work.
"As a direct result of the unforeseen reach of COVID-19 and its impact on its operations, Universal Orlando continues to experience unprecedented challenges with the economic effects likely to continue into next year. As a full recovery will take time, the Company has had to make very difficult decisions, including placing some of its Team Members on furlough," the notice read. "Universal Orlando could not have anticipated that it would exceed sic months. However, due to business circumstances that were not reasonably foreseeable at the time, Universal Orlando now expects that these Team Members' furlough could extend beyond six months form their initial furlough date."
The theme park resort began to furlough employees in May after paying employees for several weeks following the shut down of their parks in March.
They also stated in the notice that they do not expect these furloughs to be permanent but that the affect team members will be furloughed until further notice. The Orlando Sentinel reported that the extended furloughs reportedly include 104 actors, 416 attraction attendants, 284 cashiers, 450 cooks, and about 40 technicians.
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