3, page-9

Vodafone is adding 750 jobs to its call centre in Tasmania, doubling the size of its call-centre staff in the state, in a bid to differentiate itself from competitors that are offshoring jobs.

Meanwhile, chief executive Bill Morrow says the resurrection of a two-year-old class action has no impact on Vodafone's reputation and that a turnaround plan for the troubled mobile carrier should start gaining traction later this year.

Vodafone expects the additional jobs in Tasmania to add about $45 million to the state's economy annually. It has received substantial funding from the federal government, including $4 million for recruitment, training and the accommodation of new staff. Vodafone also has access to existing government programs for training and support.

The Tasmanian Government would provide $850,000 for infrastructure costs and payroll tax concessions for new employees.

Advertisement Last week Telstra announced it was moving 648 jobs from Australia to the Philippines and India. And according to the Community and Public Sector Union, senior management told Sensis staff that "Australians will get better customer services from Manila or India. They have better technology and innovation."

Mr Morrow said the message had come through "very clearly" that Australians want to talk to someone in Australia.

"The bottom line is that we have been listening to our customers. The ones we have, as well as the ones that are yet to join the Vodafone family.

"This breaks industry trend, but we think it is the right thing to do. This is not an issue about cost because it is a service that customers are asking for. It is not an issue of money, it is just the right thing to do."

Asked about the impact of the customer class action on Vodafone's reputation, Mr Morrow said it had "no impact at all". The class action was first announced in late 2010 and was re-announced on Tuesday. A law firm is representing customers unsatisfied with Vodafone's mobile or wireless broadband coverage.

"Most people see that there is not a class action suit actually filed or attempt to actually gather one. The 23,000 [signatures] is the same number that they had reported back in 2011 ... I don't believe this is something that is going to turn into a class action suit and I don't think it is damaging to our brand," he said.

Also on Tuesday, one of Vodafone Hutchison Australia's joint share holders, Hutchison Telecommunications Australia, announced a full-year loss of $394 million, following a loss of $168 million in 2011.

"This was expected," Mr Morrow said on Friday.

"It is all a part of the multi-year plan that we put together and have had approved by our board. They [the board] understand that in order to get the return on their investment, that this sort of thing is going to happen."

Hutchison also revealed some 443,000 customer accounts were lost in 2012. Vodafone now has about 6.6 million active accounts on its network, down from a peak of 7.4 million in mid-2010.

Mr Morrow said customer growth would be the first sign his turnaround plan is working, and he expects to see customer numbers increasing later this year.

Vodafone Hutchison Australia is a private company jointly owned by Hong Kong based Hutchison and the British Vodafone Group Plc.
...................im in early ,yet it looks to be blue sky from here on