Verizon Cost-Cutting Plans Extend To 'Thousands' In Management: Report

Verizon is looking to trim costs by about $10 billion, starting with its workforce, according to a new report published on Tuesday.

The carrier on Monday offered early-retirement buyouts to thousands of employees, including all management employees, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. Front-line sales employees were excluded from the offer.

Verizon did not return CRN's request for comment regarding how the channel team will be impacted by the early retirement buyout offer, or whether any channel executives will be taking the carrier up on the offer prior to publication time.

[Related: Verizon’s 5G Home Service Will Change The Wireless Game For Businesses, Partners Say]

The Journal report said the move is part of a wide-ranging cost-cutting plan to save the carrier $10 billion by 2021 being led by the carrier's new CEO, Hans Vestberg.

According to the report, which cited a Verizon spokesperson, the voluntary severance deal offers employees three weeks' pay for each year of service with the carrier, which the spokesperson referred to as more "employee friendly" than prior buyouts offers.

Two Verizon partners that spoke to CRN on the condition of anonymity said that there hasn't been any word to partners so far on any channel leadership changes.

Verizon has about 153,100 employees worldwide today, a number that has decreased from 155,400 employees at the beginning of 2018. The latest buyout marks the first offer in 13 years, according to Verizon.

Vestberg took over at the helm in August when Verizon's former CEO, Lowell McAdam, retired. Vestberg, Verizon's former president of global networks and CTO, has said that the carrier will focus on building out its strong wireless network and next-generation networking technologies, including 5G, under his leadership. The report said that Verizon's cost-cutting effort won't stop with employment, however. The plan also includes network build-out and virtualization plans.Last September, sources told CRN that Verizon was consolidating its channel leadership team following the close of its XO Communications purchase. The telecom giant made staff cuts to both the existing Verizon and XO channel management organizations as Verizon works to remove redundant positions.

Verizon's stock dipped slightly by .06 percent to $53.51 by noon on Monday.