Restructuring events
European Restructuring Monitor (ERM)
The restructuring events database contains factsheets with data on large-scale restructuring events reported in the principal national media and company websites in each EU Member State. This database was created in 2002.
Telecommunication leader Telecom Italia announced up to 5,500 net job cuts.
As disclosed to unions, the intention behind the job cuts is to bring down costs in the 2018-2010 Industrial Plan that will be presented to shareholders in March. Telecom Italia has already been reducing its staff over the last years (see Telecom ItaliaIT-2016, Telecom ItaliaIT-2015).
The plan entails between 4,000 and 5,000 early retirements and incentives for 2,500 voluntary dismissals, partially off-set by 2,000 hirings. The latter shall be balanced also by a short-time working scheme, with a generalised reduction of working time by 20 minutes a day.
Unions are available to negotiate, but they consider the measures to be inadequate to safeguard redundant workers. They expect the management to illustrate the business strategy and the sustainability thereof in terms of staff and planned investments.
The association of minority shareholders Asati, set up by Telecom employees, also expressed doubts, noting that the job cuts may engender the loss of valuable competences.
Update 6/03/2018:
On 6 March 2018, telecommunication company Telecom Italia unveiled its 2018-2020 industrial plan which entails a net headcount reduction of 4,500. This represents the balance between announced redundancies and new hirings. Some 6,500 redundancies will be implemented by means of early retirement (4,000 workers) or incentivised voluntary exits (2,500 workers). At the same time the company announced it will hire 2,000 new workers.
Negotiations between the company and the trade unions on the employment impact of the new industrial plan started on 13 March but no agreement has been reached so far. The company announced that it will act unilaterally in case no agreement is reached within the next few weeks.
Eurofound (2018), Telecom Italia, Internal restructuring in Italy, factsheet number 93376, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://dev.eurofound.europa.eu/restructuring-events/detail/93376.
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