Contel to Reorganize, Trim Its Work Force by 600 Jobs

Contel of California, the state’s third-largest local phone company, said Wednesday that it will close a regional billing center in Bakersfield but beef up its headquarters in Victorville to cover operations in eight Western states.

The moves are part of a national reorganization and consolidation announced in Atlanta by the company’s corporate parent, Contel Corp. Among other things, the changes will trim the national work force by 4%, or about 600 jobs. How many California jobs will be affected has yet to be determined, the company said.

Contel said the change will combine telephone operations from the present three regions and 12 divisions into six multi-state operating groups reporting directly to Atlanta.

Contel provides local phone service in 30 states. In California, where it serves communities in the fast-growing high desert and the mountain resorts of Big Bear and Mammoth Lakes, Contel employs 1,800 to serve about 300,000 customers. Under the reorganization, Victorville will become headquarters for local telephone operations in California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Idaho, Washington and Oregon.

Al Sabsavitz, spokesman for the California unit, said the reorganization, which will eliminate one layer of management, is an effort to make the company more responsive to customers and to the growing competition in telecommunications. The reduction in jobs also reflects improved telephone technology that requires less maintenance and operating personnel.

It is the firm’s first organizational overhaul in 18 years, Sabsavitz said.