British Gas owner Centrica has said it plans to axe a further 800 jobs on top of 500 role cuts announced last month as part of efforts to overhaul its customer services and support teams.
The energy supplier said the approximately 1,300 reductions were already under way and would take place over two years.
Proposals involve the reduction of around 500 contact-based jobs in its customer operations team, alongside additional cuts to offshore outsource support jobs.
This will lead to an approximately 14% reduction in the company’s customer operations workforce.
Additionally, it is proposing to reduce roles within its group support functions in a bid to make them more efficient.
Centrica said some of the cuts involve natural attrition, whereby a person’s job is not replaced when they choose to leave or retire.
This overhaul is a response to structural changes in customer behaviour, with average customer calls falling by 20% year-on-year, and around 90% now using digital methods of support, according to Centrica.
Chief executive Chris O’Shea said: “We’re creating an awful lot of jobs, we are growing, but we’ve got to reflect the changes in customer behaviour and we’ve got to give customers what they want.
“It’s a sensitive time when people are leaving your organisation but we’re working with our trade unions and we’re working with our colleagues in order to do this in the best way possible.”
A spokesman for Centrica said: “We have been transforming the business for a number of years to ensure we have the right roles in the right places for the future.
“This means making changes to improve efficiency, drive commercial performance and give our customers the service they want.
“At the same time, we continue to invest in the skills where there is demand, including recruiting more engineers to meet growing demand and hiring 500 apprentices this year alone.”
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Meanwhile, Mr O’Shea said he welcomed Andy Burnham’s decision to cut VAT from energy bills from October 1, which is set to save the typical household £45 a year.
But he added: “Would I rather we had more targeted support? I would, and I suspect the Prime Minister would rather more targeted support as well.
“But that will take some time. So I think we should applaud the move to remove VAT from energy bills, but we should also give them a bit of time.”
Centrica and fellow energy supplier E.On are among those who have called for targeted help for those most in need, rather than blanket support on energy bills.
The energy price cap is currently forecast to rise by 2% in October, largely driven by increased unrest in the Middle East pushing wholesale prices up, to £1,906 a year, analysts Cornwall Insight said.