Vodafone Australia is set to continue its sacking spree, despite union intervention that managed to delay proceedings for just a few days.
"We expect them [further redundancies] to go ahead as soon as possible," a Vodafone spokesperson told ZDNet.
Vodafone sacked 176 staff last week, forcing the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) to intervene to stall further job losses.
A further 124 staff were facing retrenchment but the Industrial Relations Commission issued Vodafone with a temporary order last Friday to prevent any further sackings.
The CPSU said today that it has reached an agreement with Vodafone and has dropped proceedings against the telco.
"As part of the deal, Vodafone must consult with us over future redundancies," CPSU organiser Sean Rahui said.
Vodafone chose not to consult unions over last week's dismissals despite being required to do so under the Employment Relations Act.
The CPSU was also angered over Vodafone's treatment of its workers, claiming workers were frogmarched out of the building by security officers without prior notice.
Vodafone has agreed to reinstate just one of the 176 sacked employees but will consider the others for positions that may come up as a result of government requirements that all telecommunications operators provide mobile phone number portability, the CPSU said.
"A very important fact is that of any new jobs that come up in relation to mobile phone number portability, the redundant people will get the opportunity to apply for those positions alongside internal candidates and all things being equal the redundant staff will get priority," Rahui said.
The redundant workers will also be given AU$250 towards retraining courses, according to the union.
"We feel that the discussions [with Vodafone] were constructive and positive and will hopefully lead to better dialogue in the future," Rahui said.
Vodafone said it would be "inappropriate" to comment further at this stage.
