Vodafone set to cut around 1,300 jobs in Germany

FRANKFURT  (Reuters) – Vodafone wants to cut around 1,300 full-time jobs in Germany, its regional boss Philippe Rogge told German newspaper Handelsblatt.

Administrative and management positions are predominantly affected, said Rogge in his first public comments since becoming Vodafone Germany CEO in July.

“If we want to finance our ambitions, we have to take this painful step,” said Rogge, who is also a member of the group’s board of directors in London.

The “restart” for Vodafone Germany will help to make it leaner as Deutsche Telekom’s  most important competitor, said Rogge.

Around 6.3% of the 14,230 full-time jobs in Germany will be cut, the report said.

This follows the British telecoms giant saying on March 13 it planned to shed 1,000 jobs in Italy – almost a fifth of its total workforce there.

In November, the telecoms group announced cost-saving measures worth 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in the wake of a deteriorating market outlook.

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