Windstream to lay off 375-400 employees in Q3

Windstream (Nasdaq: WIN) is looking to pare down its employee roster after completing a number of acquisitions of other service providers over the past three years.

The service provider will cut between 375-400 management positions, which translates into almost 3 percent of its total 14,500 workforce, by the end of Q3 2012.

While Windstream has been more conservative on the acquisition front, choosing make smaller deals mainly of smaller telephone companies and competitive providers, it made its biggest move last December when it acquired PAETEC.

By acquiring PAETEC, the once mainly-rural service provider of voice services instantly became the fourth largest enterprise-focused service provider, trailing the big three telcos--AT&T (NYSE: T), Verizon (NYSE: VZ) and CenturyLink (NYSE: CTL).

"Windstream has grown rapidly through acquisition, and it is crucial that our management structure be as simple and as responsive to customers as possible as we continue to build this company for long-term success," said Jeff Gardner, CEO and chairman of Windstream, in a statement.

News of these layoffs follows an earlier announcement it made in December that it would eliminate 280 mainly administrative positions in the former PAETEC's hometown of Rochester, N.Y.

When it completes this new restructuring process, the service provider says it will save $30-40 million in costs.

For more:
- see the release

Special report: Wireline in the first quarter of 2012

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