Sprint-Nextel to cut 8,000 jobs

Sprint-Nextel has announced that it will cut 8,000 jobs

Telecoms equipment maker Sprint-Nextel has become the latest company to initiate major layoffs.

The firm said that over the next few months it would cut some 8,000 of its employees, about 10 per cent of staff, in an effort to weather the ongoing economic crisis. The company expects the cuts to generate savings of $1.2bn (£848m) annually.

While the cuts will be made at all levels and branches of the company, Sprint said that the customer service department would see fewer job losses owing to its strong performance of late.

The company has said that 850 of the job cuts will come from a voluntary layoff plan that it has been offering since last autumn.

"We continue to improve the customer experience and these improvements are reflected in much higher levels of satisfaction in customer surveys and in independent performance tests," chief executive Dan Hesse said in a statement.

"Labour reductions are always the most difficult action to take, but many companies are finding it necessary in this environment."

In total, the company expects to take a hit of about $300m (£212m) in severance costs stemming from the cuts.

Sprint-Nextel joins a growing list of handset and telecoms equipment manufacturers that have had to make major job cuts. Last week, Ericsson revealed that it would be cutting some 5,000 staff.

AT&T outpaced both companies with a round of cuts in December that eliminated some 12,000 jobs.