Verizon announced 10,400 workers accepted a voluntary severance package offered as part of a plan to cut costs and realign its structure to suit 5G opportunities.

Previous reports noted the deal was offered to around 44,000 employees, or slightly more than a quarter of the workforce. The number which accepted represents around 7 per cent of a total of 152,300 Verizon staff at end Q3.

The severance package provides employees with up to 60 weeks’ salary, bonus and benefits, depending on length of service. Verizon said workers who volunteered to accept it were notified today (10 December), with the first batch due to depart by the end of the month and the remainder in two tranches in March and June 2019.

In a statement, Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg said the changes were “well planned and anticipated” and won’t impact customers.

He added in a letter to Verizon employees: “For those who were accepted, the coming weeks and months will be a transition. For the entire V Team, there will be opportunities to work differently as we prepare for the great things to come at Verizon. Together, we are leading the world during this great technological revolution, and we will continue to lead the way.”

Verizon’s decision to trim its workforce comes as the company aims to slash $10 billion in costs by 2022 and just after the operator reshuffled its fixed and mobile business units into consumer, enterprise and media-focused divisions to better address 5G opportunities.

The new three-unit structure will go into effect on 1 January 2019.