Optus Cuts 750 Jobs

Optus, the second largest telecommunications company in Australia is cutting some 750 jobs. Optus announced the move as part of the company’s restructuring.

About 750 jobs will be cut in the next few months. Optus said the cut will include positions from back office, support and operations functions. Some senior and middle management positions will also be cut. 

The Singapore Telecom subsidiary said the cut is expected to deliver around $37 million in savings. Its Consumer Division chief executive officer Kevin Russell said it was a necessary move to boost Optus’ profitability and business competitiveness. 

The layoff delivers a blow to the telecoms industry. Last December, Telstra announced that it would let go of some 280 jobs in its Australia office. These jobs would, in turn, be outsourced for the next three years. Telstra is the country’s largest telecommunications company. 

Sensis, a subsidiary of Telstra, also recently announced that it was cutting 110 jobs from its sales team. 

About two-thirds of the job cuts in Optus would affect its Sydney office. The rest will be taken from ACT, South Australia, Queensland, and ACT. 

Optus’ job cuts came after an ex-employee sued the company for $14.5 million in damages for allegedly promoting a corporate culture of bullying. Kerry Morrison claimed she suffered from bullying, suppression and victimization when she was the sales, service and marketing head for the company. 

Morrison also said the culture in Optus prevented her from performing her job. She left the company in February, just seven months after she was hired. 

Optus has denied the allegations.

Tagged Kerry Morrison, Kevin Russell, Optus, Sensis, Telstra