BT cuts 11% of workforce while absorbing Talktalk rescue

Summarised from 3 outlets · 6 reports · Updated 5 Nov, 11:48 · Archive

BT has cut its workforce by 11 per cent to 90,000 while rescuing Talktalk from administration.

BT has cut its workforce by 11 per cent to 90,000 over the past year as part of an overhaul led by chief executive Allison Kirkby. The cost-cutting drive helped push pre-tax profits up 12 per cent to £1.1bn in the six months to September, despite revenue growing just one per cent to £8.8bn. The reductions form part of a wider restructuring plan that will see BT's workforce fall to between 65,000 and 70,000 by 2030, excluding its international operations. Most of the reduction was due to fewer roles needed across its Openreach division following the peak of its fibre network build.

BT rescued Talktalk's consumer and wholesale businesses from administration last month in a deal expected to cost around £400m this financial year. The move secured services to 2.5m customers and protected jobs for 900 workers based in Salford, Greater Manchester, including vital public service customers such as hospitals and schools. However, BT's finances remain under pressure. Cash left over after running and investing in the business plunged 59 per cent to £236m, while its debt pile grew by £1bn to £21bn.

Kirkby defended the Talktalk takeover as an 'unprecedented' rescue, saying the broadband provider faced 'a real and immediate risk of liquidation'. However, she refused to rule out redundancies among Talktalk staff while the deal remains under regulatory review. The acquisition has sparked a backlash from rival Virgin Media O2, which branded it a 'stitch up masked as a rescue deal', and the Competition and Markets Authority has been ordered to investigate by Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, with a deadline of October 19.

How it is being reported

• BT cuts almost 8,000 jobs amid sweeping cost-saving programmeTelecoms group reports £1.1bn pre-tax profit in six months to end of September and share price touches five-year high Business live – latest updates BT has cut almost 8,000 jobs from its workforce since the end of March, as it pushes ahead with sweeping cost cuts across the business. The telecoms group said its workforce had fallen by 7,731 to 90,000, excluding staff in its international business, which is being spun out in a joint venture with the US telecoms company Verizon. It had a workforce, including contractors, of about 130,000 people two years ago. Continue reading...The Guardian · 5 Nov, 14:40
• BT sheds nearly 8,000 more jobs as cost-cutting drive continuesThe telecoms giant’s total workforce fell to 90,000 over its half-year to the end of MarchIndependent Business · 5 Nov, 13:09
• BT sheds nearly another 8,000 jobs as cost-cutting helps boost earningsThe telecoms giant saw its total workforce, excluding the international business, fall to 90,000 over its half-year to the end of March.Independent Business · 5 Nov, 11:18
• BT boss refuses to rule out job cuts after ‘unprecedented’ Talktalk rescueBT chief executive Allison Kirkby has refused to rule out redundancies among 900 Talktalk employees joining the telecoms giant, defending its controversial takeover of the broadband provider as an “unprecedented” rescue. The FTSE 100 boss told reporters she could not guarantee the jobs would be protected while the deal remained under regulatory review, as BT [...]City AM · 5 Nov, 11:08
• BT sheds another 18,000 jobs as cost-cutting helps boost earningsThe telecoms giant saw its total workforce fall from 108,000 to 90,000 over its half-year to the end of March.Independent Business · 5 Nov, 10:50
• BT slashes workforce as Talktalk takeover adds to turnaround challengeBT has cut its workforce by 11 per cent as boss Allison Kirkby presses ahead with an overhaul of the telecoms giant, just weeks after rescuing struggling rival Talktalk from administration. The former state monopoly said its workforce, including contractors, had shrunk to 90,000 over the past year, helping deliver £312m in annual savings as [...]City AM · 5 Nov, 07:30

In this story: BT · Talktalk · Allison Kirkby · Openreach · Virgin Media O2 · Lisa Nandy · Competition and Markets Authority · Salford

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