Original URL: https://www.theregister.com/2006/02/15/orange_wanadoo/

Orange and Wanadoo spared job cuts in UK

France Telecom confirms numbers will remain 'stable'

By Tim Richardson

Posted in Networks, 15th February 2006 11:51 GMT

Workers at Orange and Wanadoo in the UK are breathing a sigh of relief today following confirmation they will be spared from the 22,000 job cuts announced by France Telecom yesterday.

The shake-up at France Telecom comes as the firm struggles to cut its whopping debt mountain while facing a cut in traditional revenues.

The giant telco said 1,000 of the job cuts would come from outside of France, prompting speculation that Orange and Wanadoo in the UK could be forced to take its share of losses.

However, a spokeswoman for the giant telco has confirmed the UK is safe from the job axe.

She told The Reg, "We expect staffing numbers to remain stable at 15,500 employees" and that this number would "probably be about the same in three years time."

This assurance comes even as France Telecom prepares for a massive corporate makeover, scrapping the Wanadoo name and rebranding its internet operation under the Orange logo. Those plans were announced last year and, at the time, the UK was set to be of the first operations to undergo the name change.

However, there is still no word from France Telecom as to when these changes will be made. ®