By Matteo Allievi
(Reuters) -Spanish telecoms group Telefonica (BME:TEF) will lay off more than 3,400 people by 2025 to reduce costs and adapt the company's size to the current market, the country's largest trade union UGT said on Thursday.
The layoffs will mostly occur in late February 2024, UGT added.
Labour groups said earlier in December that the firm was seeking to cut around 5,000 jobs, but after weeks of negotiations, the number has been reduced.
Spain's largest telecom employs about 21,000 people in its home country, while the global workforce exceeds 103,000.
A Telefonica spokesperson declined to comment.
Part of the deal between Telefonica and the unions also includes a reduction of the working week to 36 hours in 2026 from the current 37.5 hours, a wage increase of 1.5% per year and the maintenance of a wage guarantee clause linked to the consumer price index.
In June, Telefonica established the so-called flexible working week, whereby employees may opt to work 32 hours a week - eight hours a day from Monday to Thursday.
Unions are also negotiating a collective bargaining agreement to improve working conditions, with another meeting scheduled for later on Thursday.
The layoffs are part of the company's three-year strategic plan to boost profitability by reducing capital expenditure, raising revenue and cutting costs.