Vodacom Group is laying off more than 100 employees in its South African business as part of a restructuring drive, TechCentral has learnt.
According to a well-placed industry source with knowledge of the situation, the company has served notice on 400 employees under section 189 of the Labour Relations Act. This section of the legislation deals with retrenchments and establishes the process for fair dismissals based on operational requirements.
Reached for comment on Wednesday, Vodacom South Africa confirmed the restructuring, which it described as “unfortunate”. Despite serving notices on 400 employees, it said it expects in the region of 113 people to be let go through the section 189 process.
Excluding the likes of Vodacom Financial Services and some of its smaller subsidiaries, Vodacom South Africa has a full-time employee headcount of about 4 145 people.
It marks at least the second time in the past 12 months that Vodacom has cut jobs. A year ago, Vodacom said it would cut about 80 roles. At the time, it blamed the cuts on its shift from being a telecommunications operator to more of a technology company.
“Vodacom South Africa has taken the difficult decision to restructure parts of our business, which unfortunately could impact about 113 of our valued employees across various levels including management and senior management,” it said in an e-mailed statement in response to questions on Wednesday.
“This step is part of our concerted effort to ensure that the company remains fit for purpose to support our strategic shift towards becoming a leading technology company,” the statement said.
Earnings growth
TechCentral understands that the job cuts are across the organisation and are not focused on any particular department.
“While we deeply regret the impact that this has on colleagues, we are fully committed to supporting them through this transition. Vodacom South Africa remains focused on delivering exceptional value and relevant services to customers in a rapidly evolving telecoms and ‘beyond mobile’ environment, and we are confident that these changes, while difficult, help position the company for long-term sustainability.”
Read: Vodacom sets higher earnings growth target
News of the planned retrenchments comes just a week after parent Vodacom Group told investors that it hoped to accelerate its earnings growth over the next five years. It said its focus is on increasing Ebitda growth – Ebitda is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation – from its guidance of high single digits to double digits in percentage terms. — © 2025 NewsCentral Media
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