WORKERS at BT have been offered the chance to take long-term holidays if they agree to pay cuts, it has been announced.

WORKERS at BT have been offered the chance to take long-term holidays if they agree to big pay cuts, it has been announced.

Staff have been offered one option to take a year off work while earning just a quarter of their salary, as the company look to reduce its wage bill to help avoid redundancies.

The remainder of their wages would be paid as an up-front payment, a spokesman for the company said.

BT is one of the largest private employers in the UK with more than 100,000 staff, many based at Adastral Park in Martlesham Heath.

But the economic downturn has not left the company unaffected, posting a �1.3 billion loss for the first three months of the year.

Employees have also been offered a one-off payment of �1,000 if they agree to go part-time.

Parents will also have the opportunity to cut their hours to school term times, to allow them to spend time with their children, a spokesman said.

A company spokesman said: “BT is known for its progressive human resources policies with flexible working.

“Being one of the largest employers in the UK I think this is an extremely progressive way of managing costs during a recession, rather than making redundancies.”

The company said it had “a tradition of innovation for flexible working practices,” including home-working, sabbaticals and secondments.

“These are innovative ways to help keep employees during these tough economic times,” the spokesman added.

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