Acquisition of broadband company results in job losses

A communications giant has recently confirmed that it will have to shed hundreds of jobs in the UK as a direct result of the acquisition of a broadband company last year.

According to a recent report the communications giant Cable and Wireless has confirmed that it is to get rid of six hundred employees in the UK, with the hundreds of job losses being attributed directly to the acquisition of a smaller rival last October.

Last year Cable and Wireless acquired Scottish rival, Thus, which owns Demon Broadband, in a £329 million cash deal. Fewer than three hundred of the job cuts will be Thus employees according to reports, although at one point it was thought that all eight hundred employees of Thus would lose their jobs, and the forecast was then reduced to around three hundred and fifty.

One official said: “We’re not breaking it down geographically, but I don’t believe the number of job losses in Scotland will be as high as 350. We are maintaining Thus as a headquarters in Glasgow for our national SME customers. While Thus’s larger customers – such as HSBC, energy company ScottishPower and various government contracts – have migrated over the EAUS division, which takes care of our larger corporate clients.”

Thus began life as communications company Scottish Telecom, which was a part of Scottish Power. It started in 1994, and its aim was to provide mainly business customers with telecoms and broadband networks. Following the merger of Thus and Cable and Wireless the focus was shifted so that Thus would be concentrating on smaller businesses with up to five hundred employees and Cable and Wireless would focus on the larger businesses that needed telecom and broadband services.