Thousands of jobs at Virgin Media O2 to be cut
Virgin Media O2, a major British telecoms and broadband provider, faces massive job cuts.
The short version
- The company carries a £27.2bn debt burden.
- Thousands of staff face redundancy risk.
- Most cuts target non-customer facing roles.
Check your schedule this week. Virgin Media O2, a major British telecoms and broadband provider, is preparing to cut Thousands of jobs from its 16,000 workforce according to the BBC. The company is carrying a staggering £27.2bn debt burden on its balance sheet against £45.9bn in assets as of June 30.
VMO2 is facing fierce pressure from cheaper altnet broadband providers and giant rivals like BT, which agreed to acquire rival TalkTalk. BT, the dominant UK telecommunications giant, saw its share price jump 7 percent after reports that VMO2 is close to using its rival's fibre network.
Noel McClean, deputy general secretary of the Prospect union representing VMO2 staff, called the cuts disappointing and very unsettling. VMO2 also attempted to buy altnet competitor Netomnia for £2bn via nexfibre, a joint venture owned by VMO2's owners, but the Competition and Markets Authority raised provisional concerns.
The company is halting upgrades and expansion of its own infrastructure to ease concerns over its heavy debt pile. Most affected employees are in non-customer facing roles, with senior leadership changes already underway. VMO2 declined to comment on the looming cuts.
