Everything Everywhere (EE), the new UK market-leader created via the merger between Orange UK and T-Mobile, is to cut around 1,200 jobs – about 7.5 percent of its workforce – as part of the consolidation between the two businesses. According to a Financial Times report, the cuts will cover all departments but some divisions, such as IT and legal, will be more affected. The operator has launched a 90-day programme to determine which jobs will go, with all cuts expected to take place before year-end. CEO Tom Alexander described the job cuts as “regrettable” but said that the company needed to remove any overlap between the two brands’ operations. The job cuts are thought to be part of a plan to make synergy savings of up to £3.5 billion by merging the two, previously separate, operators.

EE said earlier in the week that it “continues to make excellent progress on its integration plans,” with an accelerated timeframe following regulatory approval in March 2010. It said that from 5 October 2010, customers will be able to use both of the previously separate networks for no extra cost, as the “first phase of a multi-network strategy to combine 2G, 3G, 4G, fixed broadband and Wi-Fi in a unique customer offer.” However, the company’s first quarterly financials were less than spectacular. EBITDA was down 18.5 percent year-on-year to £309 million on mobile service revenue of £1.56 billion, down 5.3 percent, with the company citing the introduction of lower mobile termination rates by the regulator. Excluding the regulatory impact, the underlying performance remained stable, with a growth of 1 percent year-on-year.