AT&T Plans Job Cuts, Charge

AT&T(T Quote) said Monday that it would cut 3,500 jobs and take $440 million in charges as it continues to streamline its operations.

The Bedminster, N.J.-based long-distance telephone company said it will record a $240 million restructuring charge to account for the layoffs, lowering its fourth-quarter earnings by 20 cents a share. Wall Street analysts are expecting AT&T to earn 66 cents a share in the quarter on revenue of $92.1 billion, according to a survey by Thomson Financial/First Call. A large majority of the layoffs will come from management, with most of the employees leaving in the first half of 2003. The company said the job cuts come as a result of improved processes in provisioning and maintenance services for business clients.

Separately, the company extended its agreement with broadband service provider Covad, enabling it to offer high-speed Internet access to more than 50 million consumer customers. The company plans to take a $200 million charge, or 15 cents a share, for the impairment of its DSL assets.

Separately, AT&T also will take a previously announced asset impairment charge of about $1.1 billion in the fourth quarter to reflect its investment in AT&T Latin America. The charge is expected to have an impact of $1.40 a share.

The shares were recently down 18 cents, or 0.7%, at $27.48 on the New York Stock Exchange. .