Belgian operator Proximus announced an agreement with unions to offer early retirement to up to 1,300 employees. Staff from the age of 60, or for a small number from 58, will be allowed to retire early and will receive a replacement income from Proximus until they are eligible to claim their pension. They will also be offered the opportunity to take jobs elsewhere in the Belgian public administration.
Proximus said the agreement will allow it to increase efficiency and give it the flexibility to hire new profiles of employee for changing business needs. In areas such as IT, cyber security and Big Data, Proximus said it expects to attract a few hundred new hires per year in the coming years.
The social plan agreed also includes a number of smaller changes to the collective agreement, such as broadening the population eligible for homeworking, an increase in the value of meal vouchers and an extra day of leave in 2016.
