Telecom industry is going to witness massive layoffs; over 25,000 pink slips loom

The telecom industry will witness mergers and acquisitions in billions but one of the things that will take a huge hit is jobs.

Amid the consolidation wave in the telecom sector, there is going to be huge job losses.

“There is no doubt that staff at the head office and circle (offices) are on shaky ground," an HR head told ET, putting 10,000-25,000 jobs at risk.

He said the consolidation will also hit those who are indirectly employed and the number could rise to as much as one lakh.

On an average, the telecom industry employs more than three lakh people to its workforce directly and indirectly. In the M&As process, about one-third could lose their jobs.

The year 2017 is going to see some big consolidations such as Idea Cellular and Vodafone Plc, Aircel and Reliance Communications (RCom), etc.

"I cancelled my foreign trip with my child because I'd rather have some money saved up just in case," a middle-level executive at a telecom firm told ET.

As per various reports, Idea, Vodafone, RCom and Aircel employ a total 48,000 people.

Most affected departments could be circle chiefs, human resources and finance teams at the central and service area levels.

"This is such a terrible time. There is no way to show a strong result when there is an operator offering services for free," one of the circle chiefs at one of the merging companies told ET.

There has been no official word from Vodafone, Idea, TELENOR, Aircel and RCom on this.