Walt Disney’s grandson has slammed the company for offering bonuses to managers as thousands of workers have been furloughed amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to The Daily Beast.
Brad Lund, grandson of Disney, told The Daily Beast that “all family members will join in our dismay” that Walt Disney Co. has offered payments to executives despite thousands of workers suffering furloughs because of the pandemic.
“I have already expressed my hope that the Disney organization continues to give reasonable compensation and support to its many loyal employees in the spirit of the company of which my grandfather was so proud,” he told the Daily Beast.
He said offering compensation would be “right thing to do during these difficult times.”
A Walt Disney Co. spokesperson told CNN that the furlough decision was not “made lightly and was one of myriad actions taken to help the company weather the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Lund is currently in a legal battle over his inheritance with trustees for his mother’s estate. According to The Hollywood Reporter:
The backstory is ridiculously complicated, but entails a Disney inheritance worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Under the terms of trust agreements, Lund was to receive distributions upon his 35th, 40th and 45th birthdays. That is, unless it was demonstrated that he lacked the maturity and financial ability to manage such funds in a prudent and responsible manner. This caveat has been the focus of court proceedings for many years, and Lund has been in probate court in both California and Arizona fighting with trustees and his twin sister.
In February 2020, Lund filed a civil rights lawsuit in California. He’s suing a Los Angeles Superior Court judge who reportedly violated due process rights.