Everything Everywhere completed a tough week by announcing it will cut 1,200 back office and middle management staff by Christmas.
The cuts – equivalent to around 7.5% of its total workforce – are deemed necessary to help the firm achieve cost savings of £3.5 billion (€4 billion) by 2014, and will bring total layoffs to 3,700 including former T-Mobile employees ditched after the merger with Orange UK was announced in September 2009.
Around 30 managers have also been axed since July when the merger was completed, the Telegraph reports.
News of the redundancies comes just a few days after the merged mobile carrier reported disappointing 2Q results – the first quarter since the merger was completed – that saw revenues and EBITDA decline year-on-year.
Boss Tom Alexander said the redundancies were “regrettable,” but necessary to remove duplicate roles within the merged entity and so improve its efficiency, the Telegraph said.
While jobs are due to go across all departments, FT.com said the IT and legal departments would be hardest hit.
Although the carrier has entered a 90-day consultation period with its staff, the layoffs are likely to be completed by Christmas.