Federal Member for Ballarat, Catherine King, said today she was deeply concerned that Telstra was continuing to leak jobs from its skilled workforce in Ballarat.
Ms King was referring to Telstra’s proposal to create several “Design Centres of Excellence”, which the telco says will result in 15 jobs lost from Ballarat.
“This is just part of a continuing trend of job losses from Telstra in the city and it is very worrying, Ms King said.
“People in Ballarat are entitled to question Telstra’s commitment to this region. Although I understand some of these positions will shift to Geelong, it raises questions about Telstra’s corporate responsibility when it comes to regional employment.
“These decisions are always devastating news for the employees and their families and serve only to add pressure to our unemployment problems.
“If Telstra is serious about being part of Ballarat’s future it needs to clearly demonstrate some certainty about plans for its workforce here.
“As a profitable Australian company, built with the support of all Australians, Telstra is best placed to take advantage of all the benefits of regional centres like Ballarat.”
Ms King said the cuts were even more bewildering as they come at a time when Australia faces the challenge of constructing one of its most important and largest infrastructure projects, the National Broadband Network.
“The Communication Workers’ Union has identified the restructuring and loss of staff in the Telstra workforce could put unnecessary strain on workers and compromise their safety.
“I strongly urge Telstra to reconsider its decision and commit to protecting its highly skilled regional workforce.”
27th September 2016