Abigail Disney blasts company executives over furloughs

Abigail Disney ripped the Walt Disney Company on Twitter on Wednesday over its decision to furlough 100,000 workers because of declining business during the coronavirus pandemic.

Disney criticized the company for issuing dividends to stockholders and paying high salaries to executives while issuing furloughs. 

“WHAT THE ACTUAL F—,” she wrote, saying the excuse of declining business only went so far.

WHAT THE ACTUAL F***????? Look, dividends aren’t ALL bad, given the number of fixed income folks who rely on them. But still 80% of shares are owned by the wealthiest 10%. So that excuse only goes so far. But the REAL outrage is, of course, those bonuses…2/

— Abigail Disney (@abigaildisney) April 21, 2020

Disney is the granddaughter of Walt Disney’s brother, Roy Disney, who co-founded of the Walt Disney Company. 

She frequently criticizes the company and wrote more than 20 posts in Wednesday’s tweetstorm.

“Disney faces a rough couple of years, to be sure,” she wrote. “But that does not constitute permission to continue pillaging and rampaging by management.”

The Walt Disney Co. earlier this month, announced furloughs for employees “whose jobs aren’t necessary at this time.”

Disney shuttered its theme parks and resorts due to the coronavirus pandemic, and it has had to postpone the firming and release of movies.

The company faces an uncertain future, since it’s not clear when people around the world will be crowding into movie theaters or theme parks again.

The company’s top executives have faced pay cuts due to economic strains, including the recently appointed CEO Bob Chapek forgoing half of his $2.5 million salary and Executive Chairman Bob Iger, who rgave up the remainder of his $3 million salary.

Abigail Disney called Iger’s 2019 salary “insane.” Iger, who was set to move on from his position before the crisis gripped the company reportedly made $47,525,560 in 2019.

While Abigail Disney is an heir to the Disney name, she does not hold a role in the company’s operations.