DIGITAL network group Openreach has launched its biggest recruitment drive to date and has started a hunt for 400 trainee engineers across Scotland over the next 12 months.
It follows news that the company is accelerating plans to build more ultrafast Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) broadband across the UK.
The Scottish jobs – part of 3500 nationwide – will be located across the country, including more than 50 in the Highlands and Islands, around 40 each in Edinburgh, Aberdeenshire and Argyll and Bute, more than 30 in Dumfries and Galloway and 25 in Perth and Kinross.
Trainees will join the UK’s largest team of telecoms engineers working to expand, upgrade, maintain and install new services over Openreach’s national broadband network.
Openreach says its “Fibre First” programme will deliver expanded full fibre FTTP networks in up to 40 locations, setting it on a trajectory to reach ten million British premises by the mid-2020s.
It has committed to making FTTP available in three million British homes and business by the end of 2020 and, if conditions are right, intends to go further, bringing the benefits of the technology to the majority of homes and businesses in the UK.
Edinburgh is one of the first eight cities in the UK where the roll-out will start, and around 30 of the new recruits in the capital will work on the Fibre First programme.
Openreach chief executive Clive Selley said the new engineers would play a vital role in Scotland’s future success and prosperity.
“Over the last year our 3000 Scottish engineers have been the driving force behind making superfast broadband available to more than 93 per cent of the country, whilst also improving our customer service performance – but we want to do more,” he said.
“Every day, Openreach engineers are working in all weathers across the length and breadth of Scotland, connecting homes and businesses and making sure people can access the high quality broadband services they need.
“We are already investing in upskilling our engineering team and today’s announcement of new jobs, including 400 in Scotland, underlines our commitment to make our Fibre First programme a reality – future-proofing Britain’s broadband network and supporting emerging mobile technologies like 5G.”
Fergus Ewing, the Scottish Government’s Connectivity Secretary, said: “Last year, when I met Openreach, I was reassured by their plans to hire more engineers and today’s announcement shows that they acted upon it.
“It’s particularly encouraging to see that these engineers will be based across the country, with that influx of new jobs and skilled employees set to benefit some of Scotland’s more rural areas.”
Fraser Rowberry, general manager of Openreach in Scotland, who started out as an apprentice, added: “Becoming an engineer can be an incredibly rewarding career, and we’re constantly improving our training and recruitment programmes to make sure we attract and keep the best engineers in the business.
“This year we’ve invested heavily in upskilling our people, so they can now do more for customers in a single visit, and we recently launched new career pathways to give our engineers a clear sense of the skills, accountabilities and experience they need to get where they want to be.”
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