BT to shut call centres

BT is set to close dozens of its call centres and shed up to 1600 jobs as it streamlines its customer contact operation with a £100 million investment. Domestic arm BT Retail promised there would be no compulsory redundancies as it unveiled plans for a two-year revamp of its callcentres operation. The job reductions are part of a cull of 13,000 of BT Retail's 50,000 employees. It employs 16,000 people in 150 centres.

It aims to reduce the number of callers frustrated by ineffective automated messages and the wrong channelling of calls.