Najib amends post after claiming 'mandatory' job loss from telco merger

Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak has amended his Facebook posting after claiming there would be "mandatory" job losses from the proposed mega-merger between local telecommunications giant Axiata and Norway's Telenor.

Najib had earlier shared a Berita Harian report wherein Axiata group CEO Jamaludin Ibrahim assured that there would be no retrenchment, and that any job duplication would be addressed through "MSS and VSS."

Najib claimed that MSS referred to "mandatory separation scheme". "MSS means mandatory termination of jobs," he said.

Thirteen hours later, Najib amended his post to state that "M" stands for "mutual", in reference to "mutual separation scheme."

Mutual separation scheme refers to workers who choose to leave a job based on terms that are mutually agreed.

According to The Sun, Jamaludin had stressed that there would not be any retrenchment, and that any job cuts would be voluntary.

“If at all, it will be purely voluntary (via a voluntary separation scheme and mutual separation scheme),” he was quoted as saying.