Verizon cutting more than 13,000 jobs as it restructures

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. wireless bearer Verizon said Thursday it volition chopped much than 13,000 jobs successful its largest azygous layoff arsenic it works ​to shrink costs and restructure operations.

Verizon besides said it plans to person 179 corporate-owned retail stores ‌into franchised operations and adjacent 1 store.

Verizon's caller CEO, Dan Schulman, said successful a enactment to employees the institution would ‌reduce its workforce by much than 13,000 employees crossed the organization, and importantly trim outsourced and different extracurricular labour expenses.

"Our existent outgo operation limits our quality to put importantly successful our lawsuit worth proposition," Schulman wrote successful a enactment to employees seen by Reuters. "We indispensable simplify our operations to code the complexity ⁠and friction that dilatory america down and ‌frustrate our customers."

A institution spokesperson confirmed the occupation cuts, saying "this is an accidental for Verizon to reset, restructure and realign our priorities connected ways ‍that volition assistance america regain our enactment arsenic a communications provider."

Reuters and different outlets reported past week Verizon was readying to chopped astir 15,000 jobs. Most of the cuts are to its U.S. workforce.

Schulman said Verizon was establishing ​a $20 cardinal vocation modulation money for laid-off employees to absorption connected the "opportunities and indispensable ‌skill sets arsenic we participate the property of AI."

Verizon said the occupation cuts were not the effect of the company's usage of AI.

The wireless bearer faces mounting marketplace unit amid concerns implicit a shrinking excavation of caller customers arsenic older rivals connection cheaper plans and cablegram operators leap into the fray.

Schulman, a Verizon committee subordinate since 2018, was named CEO successful October, arriving from the helm astatine PayPal and facing promotions by ⁠rivals AT&T and T-Mobile astir the motorboat ​of caller iPhone models, with assertive discounts and trade-in deals.

Verizon ​added conscionable 44,000 monthly bill-paying wireless subscribers successful the 3rd quarter, lagging AT&T. T-Mobile led with much than 1 cardinal nett subscriber additions.

Verizon had ‍about 100,000 U.S.⁠ employees astatine the extremity of 2024 including astir 70,000 non-union employees. The telecommunications institution chopped astir 20,000 jobs implicit the anterior 3 years.

Verizon spent $52 cardinal to get cardinal wireless ⁠midband spectrum successful a 2021 auction to boost its 5G network. The institution besides struck a $20 cardinal woody to get ‌Frontier Communications past twelvemonth and spent $6 cardinal to get prepaid mobile telephone supplier TracFone Wireless.

‌(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Stephen Coates)