Telkom, unions agree

By Rodney Weidemann for Telkom

Johannesburg, 01 Feb 2005

Telkom and the Alliance of Telkom Unions (ATU), which includes the SA Communications Workers` Union (SACU) and Solidarity, have reached an agreement on how the monopoly will move ahead with its planned retrenchments.

The agreement follows talks held between Telkom and organised labour on its revised management headcount plan designed to improve efficiencies and productivity in the business.

"The ATU views the agreement as a great achievement in its endeavours to help minimise forceful job losses," says SACU`s deputy general secretary, Jannie Volschenk.

Volschenk says that under the terms of the agreement, the company will fast-track its three-year headcount reduction programme, in order to complete it this year.

The fast-track process will see Telkom offering enhanced voluntary severance packages and adopting a variety of cost-saving measures that, if properly implemented, will put the headcount reduction figure at 2 903 on a voluntary basis, an improvement on the approximately 4 100 job cuts originally planned by the monopoly over the three-year period.

The organisation will introduce a company-wide voluntary separation programme with an enhanced overall package, which will be available until 31 March, as well the withdrawal of leave encashment effective from 1 April.

"The parties have agreed to Telkom`s proposal that if the target is achieved - in addition to its identified cost-saving initiatives - it will put a 12-month moratorium on retrenchments," says Volschenk.

He says that as part of the agreement, the ATU also suggested a joint committee be established to oversee and monitor the voluntary process, as well as to explore other possible alternatives to avoid involuntary separations in future.

Telkom has agreed to this and has also urged the Communications Workers Union (CWU) to participate in the committee`s work, although it is still awaiting a response from the CWU.

"The company has been following a responsible and proactive approach to manage its staff numbers down due to redundancies in the workplace that unfortunately result from technological advancement," says Oupa Magashula, Telkom`s human resources group executive.

"Throughout this process, Telkom has been consulting with the ATU in order to seek common understanding on the impact such technological changes may have on the company`s skills base."

He says the agreement is a significant milestone, underscoring the importance of a harmonious relationship between management and labour on how best to manage increased efficiencies and ensure the right people are in the right jobs.

"We have taken great care to implement alternative strategies to involuntary separation, including offering enhanced packages to all employees and investing resources in their training and development to increase their skills levels and market value sustainability," he says.