Crypto
Telstra cuts 2,800 jobs as AI takes over
Telstra is set to cut 2,800 employees from its workforce. Photo: Shutterstock
Up to 2,800 Telstra workers will be retrenched by year’s end, with Australia’s largest telecommunications carrier announcing plans to pare its workforce in an AI-driven “reset” of its enterprise arm including an overhaul of its Telstra Purple services business.
The package of reforms is designed to contribute to $350 million in cost savings as the company overhauls Telstra Enterprise – the company’s business-focused service arm that includes its Data & Connectivity business and Telstra Purple consulting arm – to “sharpen its focus on areas where it has the strongest differentiation, further improve delivery for customers and improve the cost base of the business,” the company explained in an ASX filing.
The job cuts – which will require consultation with employees and unions and come days after Telstra’s last enterprise bargaining negotiations with the Communications Workers Union (CWU) – are intended to help streamline the company’s enterprise product portfolio through measures including cutting the number of products in its Network Applications and Services (NAS) arm by “close to” two-thirds.
Telstra will also simplify its customer sales and service model “to better support customers”, the company said, and will “reduce the cost base” of its Telstra Purple technology services business – a euphemism for staff cuts in that people-focused business, which last October added over 500 employees with the $267.5 million acquisition of Melbourne based cloud firm Versent.
Telstra Purple is the company’s digital transformation consulting arm, with more than 2,000 certified local experts offering a range of services across network, data and AI, cyber security, Internet of Things (IoT), software development, cloud, and workplace collaboration.
The changes mark a significant step after a review of the Enterprise business that was flagged in February during Telstra’s latest half year results briefing, when CEO Vicki Brady said Telstra was “being challenged by cost pressure” and revealed that the NAS business would undergo a full review because it was “a long way from where we need it to be.”
Many believe that the company’s successful addition of artificial intelligence (AI) has facilitated some of the cutbacks, with AI now being used to improve half of Telstra’s key processes – including automatically detecting and resolving faults with fixed services, and helping “solve customer issues faster”.
Replacing employees with AI is a “cheap, sinister move that will worsen its already disgraceful customer service standards,” Macquarie Telecom group executive Luke Clifton said after the cuts were announced.
“Telstra doesn’t believe in its staff or its customers,” Clifton said. “It has outsourced staff overseas and now, rather than taking the lead on investing in AI to support staff and create better technologies for customers, it’s trying to replace them with artificial intelligence.”
Tough measures for tough times
The CWU’s latest negotiations included demands for “fair and transparent” performance ratings and fixed and guaranteed pay increases – a change from what the union called “Telstra’s discriminatory approach of linking wage outcomes to metrics and outcomes outside of employee control.”
Whether the cuts are a direct response to the negotiations is not clear, but the CWU warned that the cuts will be a “disaster for workers and customers”.
“You can’t axe 2,800 jobs and not expect it to have an impact on service delivery,” national assistant secretary James Perkins said, warning that they “will have a devastating impact on services.”
Telstra is already grappling with after recent complaint figures showed it was struggling to maintain service standards.
The changes are just the beginning of the review of Telstra Enterprise, the company said, with Brady promising that the company “will support” retrenched workers “through this change with care and transparency”.
Consultation on 377 Telstra Enterprise roles will begin “immediately”, the company said, “mainly from areas supporting the products and services to be exited in Enterprise.”
The company – which has previously flagged the need to explore new opportunities – will also move its Global Business Services function into other parts of the business as it works through the detail of changes that are expected to deliver $350 million of the company’s T25 cost reduction strategy by the end of next year.
The restructuring efforts will cost Telstra $200 to $250 million over the next two financial years.
Telstra also announced that it will update the terms for its postpaid mobile plans to remove its CPI-linked annual price review – potentially stabilising prices that are currently set to rise with annual CPI inflation that was recently pegged at 3.6 per cent.
Key Takeaways
- The yen fell to 162.27 per dollar on June 30, its weakest level against the greenback since 1986.
- A wide rate gap, the BOJ at 0.75% versus the Fed’s 3.50%-3.75%, keeps pressuring the currency.
- Japan spent a record 11.73 trillion yen ($72.4 billion) on intervention from late April to late May.
A Four-Decade Low
The yen’s slide to a four-decade low has put Japanese authorities back on intervention watch. The currency has been dragged down by a persistent interest-rate gap between Japan and the United States, heavy speculative short positioning, and the limited staying power of Tokyo’s earlier efforts to prop it up.
The mechanics are straightforward given the Bank of Japan (BOJ) typically holds its policy rate at 0.75%, while the U.S. Federal Reserve’s target sits at 3.50% to 3.75%. That spread rewards investors who borrow cheaply in yen and park funds in higher-yielding dollar assets, a so-called carry trade that steadily pressures the Japanese currency.
Japan’s Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama signaled Tokyo’s readiness to act, saying the government was prepared to take appropriate action against excessive currency moves.
Intervention Has Already Failed Once
Tokyo has been here before and recently Japan launched its first yen-buying operation in nearly two years (after the currency punched through the politically sensitive 160 level). Authorities then spent a record 11.73 trillion yen, about $72.4 billion, defending the yen between late April and late May, only to watch it weaken again.
That track record is why traders doubt a fresh round would hold because the forces dragging on the yen are structural, rooted in the rate gap rather than short-term sentiment, and intervention can slow the slide without reversing it. Markets are now watching whether a move toward the 160-to-162 range triggers another defense from the finance ministry.
Where Does Crypto Fit Into All This?
A depreciating home currency has historically nudged some Japanese savers toward alternative stores of value, and bitcoin sits among them. Japan is one of the world’s most active retail crypto markets, and a yen losing ground against the dollar strengthens the argument that scarce, non-sovereign assets can hedge currency risk. Bitcoin priced in yen has tracked far higher than its dollar quote, mirroring the currency’s erosion over time.
The pressure also feeds into global risk appetite since a weaker yen can unwind carry trades suddenly when sentiment shifts, a dynamic that has spilled into crypto and equity markets before, sending leveraged positions scrambling.
In any case, the immediate question is whether Tokyo intervenes again or lets the slide run. With the rate gap unlikely to close soon, the Fed has held rates elevated while the BOJ moves cautiously. That said, the yen’s path ahead depends heavily on the next moves from both central banks and until that spread narrows, the currency’s weakness looks set to persist.
OHIO — The Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Financial Institutions issued a consumer alert on Monday for Ohioans who have used cryptocurrency ATM kiosks operated by Bitcoin Depot Inc.
The alert follows Bitcoin filing for bankruptcy last month in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Since the filing, it has shut down its ATM network, meaning consumers may be eligible for outstanding funds.
Bitcoin previously operated in 33 states, including Ohio, holding money transmission license number OHMT 263 with the division.
A Bitcoin ATM is a physical kiosk allowing people to buy or sometimes sell cryptocurrency, usually using cash or a debit card, but unlike a traditional ATM, it does not connect to a bank account. Instead, it transfers cryptocurrency to a digital wallet or an address the user provides.
“In the past year, Bitcoin Depot processed 10,637 individual transactions in Ohio across at least 50 machines,” the division said in a news release. “Any Ohioan who believes they may have been impacted by a scam involving these machines is encouraged to file a claim.”
There are 32 consumers who are owed a total of $90,907 in refunds, ranging from $18 to $43,000. These individuals will be contacted directly, but the division is calling attention to the situation to ensure any other Ohioan who used the service is aware of the potential refund.
Those who believe they are owed money, or who have an outstanding claim with Bitcoin Depot, can file a claim through the bankruptcy case. They can also call the company’s restructuring hotline at 844-339-4117 (Toll-Free U.S./Canada) or +1-332-232-7827 (International), or email BitcoinDepotInfo@ra.kroll.com.
Before filing a claim, consumers are encouraged to gather all recepts, transaction records and supporting documents.
For additional information, contact the Division’s Office of Consumer Affairs via email at web.dfi@com.ohio.gov or call 614-728-8400.
-
Los Angeles, Ca10 minutes agoLos Angeles County man convicted of sex trafficking, abusing woman he was dating
-
Detroit, MI30 minutes agoDetroit Tigers tee off on New York Yankees with 5 homers in win
-
San Francisco, CA40 minutes agoPopular brewery shutters San Francisco location amid industry woes
-
Dallas, TX45 minutes agoEight arrested after repeated attempts to enter World Cup matches without tickets
-
Miami, FL52 minutes agoReports: Heat add potent bench scorer in Tim Hardaway Jr.
-
Boston, MA55 minutes agoBoston Pops gearing up for major July 4th celebration: ‘You only turn 250 once’ – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News
-
Denver, CO60 minutes agoColorado wildfires destroy more than 100 structures, force more evacuations
-
Seattle, WA1 hour agoWill Katie Wilson’s endorsements help or hurt Seattle’s position in Olympia?
