Sky has announced plans to axe 2,000 jobs at its customer service centres and close three of its ten contact centres. The contact centres that will close are Stockport, Sheffield and Leeds Central.
The proposals will affect around 7% of its workforce. Its operations at Dunfermline and Newcastle would also be scaled back, according to Sky News. The company said the proposals, which are subject to consultation, are down to more people using its digital services to contact its support team.
Sky expects the number of customer service calls to drop from 25 million a year now to about 17 million by 2029 – a decrease of around a third. The company is owned by US-based firm Comcast, which is also parent company to NBC and Universal Studios.
The broadcaster said in a statement on Sky News: “We’re transforming our business to deliver quicker, simpler, and more digital customer service. Our customers increasingly want choice, to speak to us on the phone when they need us most and the ease of managing everyday tasks digitally.
“We’re investing in a new centre of excellence for customer service, alongside cutting-edge digital technology to make our service seamless, reliable, and available 24/7. This is about building a future-ready Sky that continues to put our customers and their needs first.”
It comes after Sky announced plans last year to axe 1,000 jobs in 2024, with a significant number including engineers, as fewer people want satellite dishes installed at their homes. Sky Glass and Sky Stream can be set up without assistance and only need an internet connection. At the time, Sky employed about 26,000 people in the UK.
A spokesperson for Sky said at the time: “The launch of Sky Glass and Sky Stream represents a shift in our business to deliver TV over IP (an internet connection) rather than satellite. Increasingly, customers are choosing Sky Glass and Sky Stream, which don’t require specialist installation, and that has led us to change the number of roles we need to deliver our services.”
Channel 4 also revealed plans to cut 200 jobs last year, roughly 18% of its workforce, as part of a shift to digital services. The broadcaster also closed around 40 unfilled job roles.
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