Johannesburg - Telkom, the South African landline operator that’s fighting unions over a plan to cut jobs, said it’s agreed to 2 399 voluntary severance packages as it seeks to better compete with mobile-phone companies.
“Many of that number will complete their service to Telkom today while some have deferred departure dates,” spokeswoman Jacqui O’Sullivan said in an e-mailed response to questions on Friday. “The packages were accepted by employees from across the company.”
Telkom, about 40 percent owned by the South African government, plans to reduce its staff cost-to-revenue ratio to 25 percent within three years from 29 percent, O’Sullivan said.
The phone operator is reducing spending as sales from landlines fall amid soaring use of smartphones. Telkom has South Africa’s fourth-biggest mobile-phone service, lagging behind Vodacom, MTN and Cell C.
Telkom shares increased 7.9 percent to R61.48 at the close in Johannesburg, valuing the company at R32 billion ($2.6 billion). That pared the year’s decline to 12 percent.
The company’s net revenue gained 1.7 percent to about R6.5 billion in the three months through June, CEO Sipho Maseko said in a separate statement. Capital expenditure gained 15 percent to R730 million due to spending on mobile networks and faster Internet connections.
Skilled exodus
“We remain highly concerned about the exodus of skilled Telkom workers and how this will affect the company’s future endeavors and delivery of services,” Marius Croucamp, a spokesman for Pretoria-based union Solidarity, said in an e-mailed statement on Thursday.
Maseko e-mailed staff about the departures on Thursday, according to O’Sullivan.
“Many employees who are about to leave Telkom have inquired whether we can assist them in finding alternative employment,” Maseko said in the e-mail that O’Sullivan forwarded.
“Pursuing a new career is a personal journey, and Telkom is not in a position to provide advice on employment options,” he said, adding staff could visit Telkom’s enterprise and development website, which considers funding for innovative ideas.
BLOOMBERG