Debt-laden British Telecom is to shed 2,000 jobs this year as part of its ongoing attempts to cut costs.
The group is aiming to make savings of £850 million sterling over the next three years and intends to claw back £240 million of that this year.
The bulk of this year's targeted savings will be met by trimming 2,000 jobs in its retail arm, BT Retail, which employs 50,000 people.
The division, which provides services to homes and small businesses, has already axed 3,000 jobs as part of its attempts to restructure and cut debt levels.
BT Retail chief executive Mr Pierre Danon said the latest round of the losses would be through voluntary rather than compulsory redundancies.
He added it was likely that the arm would shed another 2,000 next year, again through voluntary redundancies.
The announcement came as BT said the group's overall debt mountain, which last year peaked at £29 billion, would hit its target of £15 billion by July.
A record-breaking £5.9 billion rights issue, disposing of its Yellow Pages business, Yell, and selling a raft of properties have all helped reduce debt levels.
BT Retail also launched a new advertising campaign today, after retiring its current advertising star, extra terrestrial ET.
The new campaign, which begins on Thursday, features adverts where a series of people ask questions in a packed stadium, receiving answers from members of the audience.
BT hopes the ads will highlight the need to communicate. It refused to comment on the cost of the campaign.
PA