By Lilia Guan
A call centre closure in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, means jobs losses for the community and lost revenue for the council.
Wagga Wagga City Council mayor Wayne Geale, told Government News, Telstra’s decision to end its call centre contract with Salmat will mean a significant loss of revenue for the council.
“[This] is a huge problem. The call centre was one our biggest business and it’s a real major problem for us lost that job,” he said.
“Wagga council also owns the building that the call centre was in and that means a loss of $400,000 in revenue.”
Contact centre management specialist, Salmat announced through the Australian Stock Exchange its loss of a Telstra call centre contract early this week.
The company stated the contract loss will affect its call centres in Wagga Wagga NSW, Geelong in Victoria, Bunderberg in Queensland and Surrey Hills in Sydney.
Mayor Geale said seven years ago the call centre brought jobs to regional areas like Wagga Wagga, however 140 people are now without jobs.
“This means that 140 people won’t be out shopping, which starts to affect other businesses around the city,” he said.
“We will be doing everything we can to help find these people a job a day.”
In a statement to Government News, City of Greater Geelong mayor, John Mitchell, said the Victorian Government would be sending a rapid response team to the Geelong region to assist the call centre staff who would be looking for jobs following the Telstra announcement.
Mayor Mitchell said the Geelong would also meet with representatives of Salmat, to discuss potential opportunities.
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