BT Openreach embarks on Armed Forces recruitment drive

BT wants to recruit up to 250 former Armed Forces engineers to join its Openreach division.

BT Openreach currently employs around 33,000 people who are responsible for the installation, support and maintenance of the UK's local access network.

The business unit has enlisted the help of the Ministry of Defence's Career Transition Partnership to offer three month placements to people that have committed to leaving the Armed Forces.

Once the three months is over, candidates could then be offered a permanent position with BT Openreach, where they will be responsible for connecting up homes and businesses across the UK.

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BT Openreach has previously recruited more than 800 engineers from the Armed Forces, and praised the "enthusiasm" and "professionalism" of staff that have joined the company via this route.

Liv Garfield, chief executive of Openreach, said: "Fibre [broadband] will help to spur economic growth and these recruits will be helping to power and drive that recovery."

The company anticipates that new recruits should be in a position to start work later this month.

Caroline Donnelly was the news and analysis editor of IT Pro. Previously, she worked as a reporter at several B2B publications, including UK channel magazine CRN, and as features writer for local weekly newspaper, The Slough and Windsor Observer. She studied Medical Biochemistry at the University of Leicester and completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Magazine Journalism at PMA Training in 2006.