27/08/2001

BT Wireless demerger could mean jobs cuts in Republic

BT operations in the Republic of Ireland are likely to be severely hit by job losses when BT Wireless demerges from British Telecom, a report has revealed.

The article, in the Sunday Business Post, revealed that up to 1,500 jobs are to go when the demerger takes place later this year.

Operations in the Netherlands will also suffer, although the redundancies will take place through natural wastage and voluntary redundancy rather than wholesale compulsory lay-offs.

However, BT has dismissed the report as "speculation", and said it was too early to say how many posts an independent BT Wireless might axe. It is believed that the company hired corporate restructuring expert David Varney, in June, to oversee the BT Wireless demerger.

Besides BT Cellnet, BT Wireless subsidiaries include Viag in Germany, Telfort in the Netherlands and Esat Digifone in Ireland.

The company also dismissed a report in the Mail on Sunday newspaper that chief executive Sir Peter Bonfield was poised to step down. (MB)

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