WorldCom to cut 1,000 jobs

The US telecoms and internet group WorldCom plans to cut 1,000 jobs from its European operations including the UK, due to lower capital spending and a restructuring of the company.

The new cutbacks, the equivalent of 10% of the company's workforce in Europe, follows the loss of 1,000 European jobs at the start of the year and 6,000 redundancies in the US in March.

"It stems from reduced capital expenditures anticipated from the completion of our international networks as well as the streamlining of duplicative staff functions in multiple countries," WorldCom spokesman Brad Burns told Reuters.

The cuts come as WorldCom moves to integrate the UUNet internet service provider that it bought in 1996.

WorldCom said in late August its 2002 capital spending budget would be $5.5bn, compared with a 2001 budget of almost $8bn.

Restructuring

According to a report in the Financial Times newspaper, most of the job cuts will be in the UK and some compulsory redundancies are likely.

WorldCom employs 4,000 people in the UK but a spokesman said it was still unclear how many of those jobs would be lost.

The relocation of the company's European headquarters from London to Reading is expected to result in a number of voluntary departures.

The company's back-office functions - like human resources and financial admin - in several countries, will be consolidated into the location, the company said.

The Mississippi-based company said the WorldCom Group currently employs about 60,000 worldwide.