Openreach is to hire over 5,000 engineers to help in building up the UK’s full-fibre network, an effort that will also see its entire commercial fleet switching over to all-electric by 2030.
The BT subsidiary is looking to fill the roles within the next 12 months and the expansion includes more than 2,500 full-time jobs in its service and network-build divisions, as well as an estimated 2,800 positions in its UK supply chain.
Over the last two years, Openreach has created more than 6,500 trainee engineering roles to support its build programme.
The news comes as the company tackles building out a full-fibre network, which aims to reach 20 million homes and businesses by the mid-to-late 2020s. The company said it was on course to connect 40,000 homes and businesses every week, or the equivalent of one home every 15 seconds.
The firm pointed to research that said the fibre rollout boost UK productivity by £59 billion by 2025.
Openreach CEO Clive Selley said that the full-fibre network build was “faster than ever”.
“We’re now looking for thousands more people to build a career with Openreach and help us upgrade broadband connections and continue improving service levels. We’re also investing in our supply chain, which will support the creation of thousands of jobs based all over the UK,” he said.
He added that the network would deliver a number of environmental benefits, from consuming less power to enabling more home working and fewer commuting trips. He added that the company was also committed to using electric vehicles across the company’s 27,000-strong fleet, which will have completely transitioned to EVs by 2030.
Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden added: “The plans are a huge step forward in our mission to level up Britain's digital infrastructure and, alongside the Government's £5billion investment, will make sure even the hardest-to-reach areas get a lightning fast connection.”
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