Vodafone Spain has announced plans to lay off up to 515 workers throughout the country, equivalent to 12 percent of its total workforce of around 4,200. The company said the collective dismissal (ERE) will mainly affect its commercial areas, describing it as an “essential step to face the challenging conditions of the competitive Spanish market.” It comes around two and half years after it axed around 500 workers and agreed another 500 voluntary resignations, affecting around 20 percent of its workforce at the time.
In a statement, Vodafone said it intends to begin a one-month consultation period with unions at the end of September. The decision was attributed to “economic, productive and organisational reasons”, above all the need to “improve its operational performance by accelerating its digital transformation strategy.”
It also referred to a sharp drop in revenues and a significant deterioration in margins caused by the intensity of competition in prices and the drift towards low-value rates in Spain. Vodafone added that it’s looking to promote the areas of innovation, digital and new technologies with a view to capturing new business opportunities.
In that regard, earlier this year the operator announced the launch of the Vodafone Group's largest R&D Centre of Excellence in Malaga, which will have more than 600 highly qualified and specialised jobs, with more to be added at Vodafone Spain over the next 12 months.
