Standard content for Members only
To continue reading this article, please login to your Utility Week account, Start 14 day trial or Become a member.
If your organisation already has a corporate membership and you haven’t activated it simply follow the register link below. Check here.
Southern Water said it is two years into a “challenging business transformation programme” in response to news that around 200 customer service jobs could be cut at its Worthing and Falmer offices.
The water company is consulting with affected employees and said a “full package of support” would be available to them.
Outsourcing giant Capita will take over most roles from 1 August. The company was selected by Southern Water as its new customer services “managed service provider” in July last year in a contract worth more than £30 million.
The deal was signed for an initial five-year term with an option to extend for a further three years. It followed a six-year relationship between the two companies for front office operations.
Southern Water said it is making changes to ensure its customer service “remains fit for the future” while keeping “bills affordable”.
In a statement the company said: “We are making good progress and have delivered our best ever customer service score in the water industry league table. We’ve created more than 100 jobs in our IT department by bringing the service in house.
“These positive improvements have been recognised by our regulators. However, there is more to do and the changes we are making will ensure our customer service remains fit for the future and meets our customers’ expectations, while keeping bills affordable and meeting the efficiency challenge set out by our regulator, Ofwat.”
A Capita spokesperson added: “The significant expansion of Capita’s contract is testament to the confidence Southern Water has in our ability to deliver an outstanding customer service. By consolidating Southern Water’s complaints, collections, social media contact and some back-office services under one roof, we believe we will be able to further enhance customer experience.”
Southern Water will consult for 45 days with workers before the transfer. Roles are expected to move to Yorkshire and India and there will be separate consultations on redundancies by Capita, according to the union Unison.
As Capita takes over the work staff will be made redundant “in stages” until the end of October. Unison said there will be up to 200 job losses.
Caroline Fife, Unison regional organiser said staff were “upset, shocked and angry” about the news.
She said: “They don’t know which group of staff they are in and what is going to happen. Given the short timescale they want to know what is going to happen when and what money they will receive so they can plan their lives. A number of staff have less than two years’ service so they will not be eligible to get any redundancy pay. Unison will be trying to provide support to staff over the next few weeks.”
The job cuts will follow a reduction in staff numbers at Southern Water last year.
The company told Utility Week in May 2018 about plans to reduce its staff members by approximately 150 people within management and support roles in a drive to become more efficient.
Southern Water was placed in the “significant scrutiny” category for its business plan for PR19 when Ofwat published its initial assessment of water companies’ proposals for 2020-2025.
Please login or Register to leave a comment.