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Telkom blindsides unions

Telkom CEO Sipho Maseko's comments over staff cuts have soured relations with two of the parastatal’s unions. Unions are up in arms over news that Telkom wants to get rid of as many as 1 000 managers and cut its almost 21 000-strong workforce by a third over the next five years.


While rumours were circulating that managers would be asked to leave the company voluntarily,  Maseko's statements to Bloomberg about his aim of trimming the staff complement, in a bid to turn the flagging company around, came as an unwelcome New Year's surprise to labour unions.

"I've cancelled all of the bottled water, people are not happy; I've cancelled Christmas lunches, people are not happy," Maseko is quoted as saying. "They'll be saying that some of the proposals around cost cuts are too aggressive."

Telkom's official statement on the issue, sent in response to questions seeking to confirm the Bloomberg article, is that it has yet to take a decision on trimming its employee base.

Telkom adds it has reviewed trimming staff costs, and "proposals regarding the approach to be employed are still under consideration". The operator says, as no decision around cutting staff has been reached, no cuts have been implemented and the company is committed to engaging with all relevant stakeholders before anything is done.

Nicola Mawson is ITWeb deputy news editor who hates corruption of any sort. She does not drive a million-rand Beemer and would rather walk.