BT Group to Consult on Transferring 31,000 Staff to Openreach

   By Adria Calatayud 
 

BT Group PLC (BT.A.LN) said Tuesday that it will start consultations on the transfer of about 31,000 employees to Openreach Ltd. as part of the final phase of BT's bid to transform its networks arm into a more independent, legally separate business.

The consultations with unions and employees are due to finish by the end of September, with the transfer to Openreach planned for Oct. 1.

BT agreed to make Openreach--which runs the U.K.'s main phone and broadband network--a distinct company within the group last year in response to requirements by Britain's telecommunications regulator, Ofcom.

In a report last month, Ofcom urged BT in a report published last month to transfer staff to the new legally separate business.

"Openreach now has its own Board, greater strategic and operational independence, and a separate brand. From October it will also have its own, independent workforce," BT Chief Executive Gavin Patterson said.

Earlier on Tuesday, Ofcom--the U.K.'s Office of Communications--said it plans to require Openreach to offer unrestricted access to its infrastructure to competitors, as part of a strategy to boost investment in fiber connectivity.

Write to Adria Calatayud at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 24, 2018 04:52 ET (08:52 GMT)

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