Vodafone says to cut 600 jobs in Germany
Reuters
January 29, 2014, 5:19 am
The headquarters of Vodafone Germany are pictured in Duesseldorf September 12, 2013. REUTERS/Ina Fassbender
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Vodafone is seeking to cut around 600 jobs in Germany, representing 5.7 percent of its workforce there, as it grapples with harsh competition and lower revenues, its German division said on Tuesday.
"We have started voluntary job cuts. Nobody is forced to accept the offer," a company spokesman said.
Vodafone Germany last month announced it would seek to cut 100 million euros (82 million pounds) in annual costs, saying it would try to avoid forced redundancies.
Vodafone and rivals Deutsche Telekom , Telefonica Deutschland and KPN's E-Plus are in a fierce battle for German customers, who are catching up with the rest of Europe in switching to smartphones from basic mobiles.
In addition, mobile carriers are suffering from stricter regulation.
The cutbacks come on top of a two-year restructuring programme launched by Vodafone Germany in April last year, affecting 500 jobs.
(Reporting by Peter Maushagen; Writing by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Louise Heavens)
