Qwest said today that it has reached an agreement with union officials to offer buyouts to nearly 700 workers, or less than 2 percent of its nationwide workforce as the customers move away from landline phones.
At the end of 2007, Denver-based Qwest had about 36,800 employees. The buyouts — in are expected to be complete by March 27, and are being offered to workers based on years of service.
Customers are abandoned their home phones last year for wireless service, or digital phone service offered by rivials such as Comcast and Vonage which rely on broadband connections. Qwest lost 9.1 percent of its residential lines in 2007, ending with 7.4 million.
“It’s been a constant effort to balance that loss of workload with our workforce,” said Qwest spokesman Bob Toevs.
Shares of Qwest were up 3.4 percent, or 15 cents at $4.65 at midday. The company’s stock has fallen 36 percent this year before today.
But at the same time, Qwest CEO Ed Mueller said the company would spend $300 enhance its high-speed Internet network.
The faster connections may persuade more customers to stay with Qwest, Mueller said in an interview this month.
The financial impact of the buyout program will be recorded in first-quarter results, Toevs said.
Information from Bloomberg was used in this report.
