Enniskillen: BT call centre staff told site may close later this year

Staff at a BT call centre in County Fermanagh have been told that it may close later this year.

About 300 people are currently employed in Enniskillen providing support to EE mobile phone customers.

They have been offered voluntary redundancy amid a review into the future of the site.

BT Group said a final decision had not been made but the building would require significant improvements to make it fit for purpose.

However, staff have been told that it has not been identified as a long-term location for a customer contact centre.

It follows a review of the company's buildings in Northern Ireland and its growing presence in Belfast.

Ulster Unionist MLA Tom Elliott said the Enniskillen site is a "a vital hub of employment with loyal and dedicated staff".

He added that "its closure would have a detrimental effect on the regional inequality that already exists across Northern Ireland that disproportionally affects the west".

"I have requested an urgent meeting with BT to discuss pathways forward and I will be writing to the new economy minister to outline my concerns."

Sinn Féin MLA Jemma Dolan described it as "devastating news for workers and their families".

She has also called for an "urgent meeting" and would be pressing BT to "save the jobs of hundreds of workers and retain this site".

DUP MLA Deborah Erskine described the news as a "hammer blow to the economy of Enniskillen", with her thoughts being with the staff.

"Whilst the BT Group have said no final decision has been made on the future of the Enniskillen site, I will be working hard to protect jobs."

A BT Group spokesperson said the company was undertaking an ambitious modernisation programme and consolidating buildings within its estate.

"We are currently reviewing our contact centre in Enniskillen and have offered colleagues the opportunity to take our voluntary paid leavers package.

"No decision has been made on the future of our Enniskillen contact centre and no customers will be impacted by today's announcement."

BT Group supports 7,300 jobs in Northern Ireland.

The company's flagship headquarters in Belfast has recently reopened after a multi-million pound upgrade.

The potential loss of 300 jobs would be a major blow to the local economy.

Staff leaving the contact centre said they were shocked.

BT insist no final decision has been taken but employees said they were told Enniskillen was not a "long-term strategic site".

Some who have worked in the building since it opened more than 30 years ago said they were despondent and heart-broken.

They now have four weeks to decide whether to take the leaving package on offer.