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Several people will soon lose their San Diego jobs (Click here) with a popular theme park.

SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment recently announced that it will eliminate 350 jobs as part of a company-wide restructuring effort. This round of job cuts, which is the first in two decades for the company, will result in about 80 layoffs at SeaWorld San Diego.

SeaWorld currently operates 10 theme and water parks throughout the nation. The company has a peak workforce of about 20,000 employees, with 3,500 to 4,000 of those positions in San Diego, including part-time and seasonal workers.

That means the layoffs will result in a 2 percent decline in both SeaWorld's national employment total and local employment total. According to an article by the San Diego Union-Tribune, all of the employees affected by the company's layoffs are expected to receive severance benefits.

"This restructuring will allow us to operate more efficiently and better position us for long-term growth and independence," Jim Atchison, president of SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment, said. “Our primary goal is to eliminate some of the duplication of responsibility that affects performance, innovation and our ability to execute quickly.

The layoffs are due in part to a 6 percent decline in attendance at SeaWorld's 10 parks and a revenue drop of $200 million. This comes on the heels of The Blackstone Group's decision to purchase the parks for $2.3 billion last year.

SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment owns: SeaWorld parks in Orlando, San Diego, and San Antonio; Busch Gardens parks in Tampa and Williamsburg; Discovery Cove and Aquatica in Orlando; Adventure Island in Tampa; Water County USA in Williamsburg; and Sesame Place in Langhorne.

Labels: San Diego jobs