Br.small Co.2 Regulatory News (BSC)

16 Dec 2005 07:00

Bellsouth Corp15 December 2005 For More Information: Jeff Battcher404 249-2793 BellSouth announces management reduction Most are expected to take voluntary offer December 15, 2005, ATLANTA - In an ongoing effort to better position the companyfor success in the competitive broadband marketplace, today BellSouth (NYSE:BLS) announced a management reduction of approximately 1,500 employees. Thereductions will take place in supervisory and non-supervisory managementpositions, including staff support functions. Most of the reductions areexpected to occur through the acceptance of voluntary severance packages and areto be completed by April 30, 2006. "Reducing workforce is the toughest business decision a company has to make,"said BellSouth Chairman and CEO Duane Ackerman. "We have worked hard to avoidit, but many companies our size and particularly our competitors operate withlower overhead and fewer management layers." BellSouth will record an after-tax charge of approximately $95 million,approximately $50 million of which will be recognized in the fourth quarter of2005. About BellSouth Corporation BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered inAtlanta, Georgia. BellSouth has joint control and 40 percent ownership ofCingular Wireless, the nation's largest wireless voice and data provider with52.3 million customers. Backed by award-winning customer service, BellSouth offers the mostcomprehensive and innovative package of voice and data services available in themarket. Through BellSouth Answers(R), residential and small business customerscan bundle their local and long distance service with dial-up and high-speed DSLInternet access, satellite television and Cingular(R) Wireless service. Forbusinesses, BellSouth provides secure, reliable local and long distance voiceand data networking solutions. BellSouth also offers print and online directoryadvertising through The Real Yellow Pages(R) from BellSouth and YELLOWPAGES.COM(TM) BellSouth believes that diversity and fostering an inclusive environment arecritical in maintaining a competitive advantage in today's global marketplace.More information about BellSouth can be found at http://www.bellsouth.com. In addition to historical information, this document may contain forward-lookingstatements regarding events and financial trends. Factors that could affect future results and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements include: (i) a change in economic conditions in markets where we operate or have material investments which would affect demand for our services; (ii) the intensity of competitive activity and its resulting impact on pricing strategies and new product offerings; and (iii) those factors contained in the Company's periodic reports filed with the SEC. The forward-looking information in this document is given asof this date only, and, BellSouth assumes no duty to update this information. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange