- Virgin Media O2 currently employs around 16,000 workers
- However reports claim 25% could be set for redundancy
- Non-customer-facing roles will likely be heaviest hit
Sky News has reported that Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) plans to cut an unconfirmed number of jobs – understood to be in the thousands – amid ongoing cost reduction efforts and a bid to get a grip on company debt.
Though the number of workers said to be impacted is not yet known, the company currently employs around 16,000 workers, so 'thousands' would represent a significant chunk of its workforce.
VMO2 looks to be one of the latest companies in a long list to be flattening its hierarchy, with changes to management reportedly underway.
VMO2 job cuts look to be around the corner
Crucially, Sky News reports that non-customer-facing roles will likely be heaviest hit. The firm's customer services typically perform well, it seems, with Virgin Media reporting the fewest number of complaints compared with competitors (via Ofcom) on the broadband front. Though O2 sits somewhere toward the top on the mobile front, beating only Sky Mobile (which also uses the O2 network).
An unnamed insider believes as many as 4,000 jobs could be at risk, representing 25% of VMO2's entire workforce.
It's believed that the company could share precise numbers and details as part of its Q3 earning call on November 3. Overall company revenue dropped 7.9% last quarter.
But VMO2's biggest issue is likely debt. Last quarter, it reported a total net debt equivalent to 5.89x annualized adjusted EBITDA.
But VMO2 isn't the only telecoms giant adjusting its workforce in response to financial pressures – VodafoneThree also confirmed plans to cut 1,200 jobs in July 2026, though these were Europe-wide.
TechRadar Pro has contacted VMO2 to confirm plans to lay off thousands, but we did not receive an immediate response.