ID :
119035
Tue, 04/27/2010 - 17:50
Auther :

Telstra considering job cut proposals

Telstra says a final decision is yet to made on potential job cuts after claims the
telco is planning to shed up to 900 workers.
Employees were briefed by Telstra management on Tuesday about plans to make cuts to
its operations division over the next financial year.
It is understood up to 900 jobs could go with the Communications Electrical and
Plumbing Union (CEPU) saying the plan would see one in 16 workers removed from
providing service delivery to Telstra customers.
"They've decided on budget cuts and in order to try and fit the problems they've got
into the budget cuts, they're having a review of operations," CEPU divisional
president Len Cooper told AAP.
"They're going to try and produce cuts of approximately 900 staff to fit the budget."
It's likely Telstra staff would be offered redundancies under the plan.
But a Telstra spokesman said no final decision had been made.
"We're in the very early stages of annual business planning for the Telstra
operations team and these are just proposals that we are talking to our employees
about," he told AAP.
"It could mean changes over the coming year including potential job reductions."
The telco rejected suggestions customer service would be affected.
"Any changes or job reductions would not compromise customer service," the spokesman
said.
"The fact is we're improving our network and our ways of doing things and there's
less work required to design, build and maintain our networks.
"Unfortunately, there's never a good time for job reductions but new technologies
and new ways of working mean that we can serve our customers with fewer jobs."
However, the CEPU said the plan would result in one in 16 workers being removed from
providing service delivery to Telstra customers, adding that policies linked to
staff cuts had already led to a deterioration in customer service standards.
"Last October, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman reported a 54 per cent
increase in complaints and between July and December 2009 Telstra topped the
grievance list with 58,597 complaints," Mr Cooper said.

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