Telstra declares job cuts as Govt grapples with broadband plans
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Broadcast: 05/06/2007
Reporter: Narda Gilmore
Telstra has announced that around 1,000 workers will lose [their]
jobs as the Federal Government grapples with plans for a high-speed
broadband network in Australia.
Transcript
TONY JONES: Well around 1,000 Telstra workers will soon be out of a
job with the company announcing plans to close call centres around
the country. News of the job cuts came just as Telstra was at the
centre of federal Cabinet discussions over the roll-out of high-speed
broadband networks.
Well the Government is moving to fast track a privately-funded
network in a bid to counter Labor's $4 billion broadband plan. From
Canberra, Narda Gilmore reports.
NARDA GILMORE: Telstra boss Sol Trujillo flagged up to 12,000 job
cuts back in 2005, part of a major company restructure. But at this
Launceston call centre, employing more than 250 staff, they didn't
see it coming.
IVAN DEAN, LAUNCESTON MAYOR: You just can't dismiss people like this
and expect them to go on without some support.
PAUL BLAKE, COMMUNITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR UNION: I'm just surprised and
outraged that you know, that a community like Launceston would have
250 jobs taken out of it.
NARDA GILMORE: Telstra has revealed its plans to streamline service
and technical support operations at 17 call centres around the
country, leaving around 1,000 workers out of a job. Cities bearing
the brunt include Launceston, Brisbane, Newcastle, Adelaide,
Wollongong and Canberra. The cuts will be offset with new jobs at
four centralised centres in Sydney, Melbourne, Townsville and Perth.
GRANT WILTSHIRE, TELSTRA COUNTRY WIDE: There were certain criteria as
far as where the four centres were going to be located.
NARDA GILMORE: The net job loss totals 500, the saving to Telstra
more than $6 million a year. It's not great timing for the
Government, Telstra was the topic of discussion around the Cabinet
table for a different reason today, as the Government grapples with
ways to speed up the roll-out of a high-speed broadband network.
PETER COSTELLO, TREASURER: I'd like to see it rolled out as quickly
as possible.
NARDA GILMORE: Kevin Rudd has been leading the charge on broadband,
with a $4 billion promise for a high-speed national network. The
Government has been leaving it to the market to agree on a privately-
funded roll-out until now.
MARK VAILE, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: We are moving forward towards a
significant announcement in this area.
NARDA GILMORE: In a bid to end the long-running stand-off between
Telstra, the rival G9 consortium and competition watchdog, the ACCC
over price and access rules, Cabinet is looking at a regulatory shake-
up.
It's expected a new advisory panel will be appointed to handle
negotiations reporting directly to the minister, partly bypassing the
ACCC, although it will still be involved.
PETER COSTELLO: The ACCC has got tremendous experience here and I
think it probably knows more about these pricing things than anybody
else.
NARDA GILMORE: Telstra wasn't commenting today. The G9 consortium
says it's willing to cooperate as long as the process is fair.
DAVID TUDEHOPE, MACQUARIE TELECOM: What we want to avoid is the
secret Telstra negotiations, the lack of transparency around the
proposals.
NARDA GILMORE: Both G9 and Telstra say they could start building
within months of approval, potentially just in time for the federal
election. The Treasurer says the Government is not putting any time
limits on a deal, but he points out the private network would come at
no cost to the taxpayer. Kevin Rudd has questioned the timing and the
Government's commitment.
KEVIN RUDD, OPPOSITION LEADER: The Government has got to be in there.
If we just stand back and wait somehow for private investors to fix
all of this up, you'll only get it partly fixed up and you'll never
get it fixed up quick enough against our competitive economies.
NARDA GILMORE: Because any new private network would be limited to
the major cities, the Government is also looking at boosting Internet
services in regional areas.
MARK VAILE: Well up to the expectations of everybody.
NARDA GILMORE: Second-rate according to Kevin Rudd, who says his
broadband plan would cover 98 per cent of the country.
