BT Group to Consult on Transferring 31,000 Staff to Openreach
July 24 2018 - 5:07AM
Dow Jones News
By Adria Calatayud
BT Group PLC (BT.A.LN) said Tuesday that it will start
consultations on the transfer of about 31,000 employees to
Openreach Ltd. as part of the final phase of BT's bid to transform
its networks arm into a more independent, legally separate
business.
The consultations with unions and employees are due to finish by
the end of September, with the transfer to Openreach planned for
Oct. 1.
BT agreed to make Openreach--which runs the U.K.'s main phone
and broadband network--a distinct company within the group last
year in response to requirements by Britain's telecommunications
regulator, Ofcom.
In a report last month, Ofcom urged BT in a report published
last month to transfer staff to the new legally separate
business.
"Openreach now has its own Board, greater strategic and
operational independence, and a separate brand. From October it
will also have its own, independent workforce," BT Chief Executive
Gavin Patterson said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Ofcom--the U.K.'s Office of
Communications--said it plans to require Openreach to offer
unrestricted access to its infrastructure to competitors, as part
of a strategy to boost investment in fiber connectivity.
Write to Adria Calatayud at
adria.calatayudvaello@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 24, 2018 04:52 ET (08:52 GMT)
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