Safaricom, Airtel start hiring yuMobile staff ahead of buyout

Safaricom and Airtel Kenya have started absorbing 175 yuMobile employees in a recruitment exercise expected to be concluded within three weeks.

yuMobile chief executive Madhur Taneja told the Business Daily that the two mobile operators are screening his firm’s employees with an aim of aligning their skills set with available job vacancies.

Absorption of the employees by the two telcos is not guaranteed and will depend on their willingness to accept available positions and terms laid down by their potential employers, Mr Taneja noted.

Safaricom is expected to take over 150 yuMobile employees and Airtel is to inherit 25 as part of their Sh11 billion joint buyout of the company.

yuMobile is the operating brand of Essar Telecom, which is exiting the Kenyan market after years of losses.

“The process of screening  yuMobile employees began two weeks ago and we expect this to continue until November 7, thereafter, the employees will be given offers,” Mr Taneja told the Business Daily in a telephone interview.

Safaricom corporate affairs director Nzioka Waita confirmed that the company has started recruiting its share of yuMobile employees.

“The interview process is well underway and we remain confident that we shall be able to absorb at least 150 of the Essar staff in the event that the acquisition process receives all necessary regulatory approvals,” Mr Waita told the Business Daily. 

He added that Safaricom is using its standard recruitment processes to hire yuMobile employees.

“The situation with Essar employees is no different, those who have expressed an interest in joining Safaricom upon conclusion of the acquisition process are currently being interviewed and being matched to suitable roles,” he said.

yuMobile has 197 employees excluding expatriates, meaning 22 employees will not be absorbed in the buyout deal.

Safaricom has paid Sh6.9 billion to acquire the company’s assets, including frequency spectrum, transmission towers and IT equipment. The deal is subject to shareholders’ approval.

Airtel has agreed to pay Sh4 billion for yuMobile’s subscribers and its operating licence in addition to its own.

The recruitment comes as a relief to yuMobile workers, who went to court early this year seeking to block the sale of the telco over their job security.

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The fate of employees and subscribers and also how the business will be liquidated were among the issues the telecoms regulator considered before approving the deal.

The acquisition of yuMobile subscribers will see Airtel’s customer base rise to 7.5 million from the current five million.

On its part, Safaricom will have the much-needed frequency spectrum to accommodate its growing subscriber base that hit the 21 million mark between January and March and to improve the quality of its voice service.