Telefónica is cutting 1,100 jobs at its German subsidiary O2 as part of a major cost-cutting restructure aimed at improving the company’s competitiveness.
The telecoms giant revealed that up to one in six full-time positions will be eliminated by the end of the year, costing the company around €265 million.
As a result, the company has begun offering redundancy packages and other incentives designed to encourage staff to leave voluntarily.
Don’t miss the stories shaping the future of mobile technology.
Subscribe to Mobile Europe’s newsletter – delivered twice a week.
Alongside this, O2 will also reduce the number of its own retail stores, representing a reduction of around 8%.
The company plans to close 60 of its approximately 800 O2 shops by the end of the year, with franchise-operated locations remaining unaffected.
Santiago Argelich Hesse, CEO of Telefónica Deutschland, said: “We want to further establish Telefónica Deutschland as the leading provider of digital infrastructure and services for people and businesses in this country. To this end, we are realigning our team and our processes.
“We are simplifying the organisation, consolidating activities and intensifying the use of artificial intelligence in key processes. In this way, we are safeguarding Telefónica’s competitiveness and future viability. We want to be the best gateway to digital technologies for citizens, businesses and institutions.
The second round of cuts will require additional provisions of up to €155 million. Once both phases of the restructuring are completed, O2 Telefónica expects to reduce its annual costs by around €185 million from 2028 onwards.
