NII to cut jobs in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile to accelerate growth

Telecom service provider NII Holdings on Monday announced its plan to cut jobs in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Chile.

The job cut is part of long term strategies of NII Holdings, which is operating under the Nextel brand in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Chile, to accelerate growth and to save around $55 million per year.

NII Holdings will reduce over 25 percent jobs at the company’s headquarters’ and more than 1,400 positions in its market operations.

The telecom operator expects to incur cash costs related to employee severance in the range of $25 million to $35 million in connection with the plan, which include $8.6 million in charges related to restructuring activities at its Mexico operating subsidiary.

NII Holdings

NII has also modified its customer deactivation policy for inactive prepaid subscribers. As a result, the company expects a higher level of prepaid subscriber deactivations in Mexico than previously estimated. It expects a net subscriber loss of approximately 400,000 subscribers in Mexico for the fourth quarter 2013.

“The structural changes we are announcing today support our accelerated growth strategy,” said Steve Shindler, NII Holdings chief executive officer. “By realigning our business and refocusing our teams on our growth goals, we can further simplify and streamline operations, reduce costs and free up resources.”

As part of its Project Accelerate initiative, NII is investing in marketing campaigns in core markets that target growth on its new 3G networks, expanding the coverage and capacity of its 3G networks in Mexico and Brazil, and expanding its device portfolio to include a wider range of smartphones and other handsets.

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