adminTelOne said the digitalisation of the current analogue system was not feasible in the immediate to medium term.
New board chairman Mr Amos Mushaninga made the assurance in a circular to workers after “alarmist” media reports that TelOne would lay off up to 2 000 of its 2 500 employees on digitalisation.
The reports, following the chairman’s remarks before a Parliamentary Portfolio Committee, caused jitters among TelOne workers, who professed to be in the dark.
“As you may be aware, the digitalisation is an exercise that requires investments in excess of US$300 million, a sum not attainable in the immediate to medium terms,” said Mr Mushaninga.
Mr Mushaninga added that when the investment is eventually secured the digitalisation would take years to complete.
He said only after the money had been secured would TelOne “then require a relook at our current organisational structure”.
“The circular . . . serves to advise staff, and allay fears that TelOne is immediately restructuring and retrenching between 1 700 and 2 000 employees, which is totally false,” he said.
But TelOne’s new board chairperson admitted that digitalisation would affect the firm’s long-term structure and human resources.
He also pointed out that while restructuring was a long way off, management had been asked to work on a new structure, which would be shared with stakeholders when complete.
But the workers’ representatives were not amused that the TelOne board would make such a landmark announcement without consulting them.
Communications and Allied Services Workers’ Union of Zimbabwe secretary-general Mr Christopher Chizura said management should have met with members of the union before going to Parliament.
“A chairman who observes good ethics was supposed to meet management and union representatives, collect information and then present it to the portfolio committee,” he said.
“Retrenchment is a not a one-way process; we have to meet as decision-makers and employees to discuss the matter,” Mr Chizura said.
The union was left in a quandary as to whether Government was now abdicating its commitment to provide a social service to the rural areas, which are still connected through analogue systems.
“Most rural exchanges in the country are still analogue based and are manned by engineers all the time,” said Mr Chizura.
Workers dismissed TelOne’s retrenchment plans at a time unemployment was at a record high. They also doubted TelOne’s capacity to meet the retrenchment costs when it was reportedly owed a total of US$200 million by subscribers.
Further, the union said the country’s sole telecommunications operator should justify its decision to slash its workforce by making public its audited accounts.
Online Reporter