Bolt Nigeria has denied laying off 22 of its 45 staff, three days after one publication reported the layoff.
Citing a source close to the matter, Technext disclosed that the layoff affected the company’s staff in Warri, Port Harcourt, and Edo State. Senior management was also said to be affected.
Meanwhile, in an email to Techpoint Africa, the company cited misinformation in the report.
While Bolt Nigeria has discontinued its collaboration with some of its employees, the company has clarified that it’s not a case of layoffs, as reported.
Contrary to speculations claiming Bolt had to downsize to make the platform more efficient and profitable, the company asserts it only let go of some employees because it’s “updating and automating a considerable number of customer support and operational processes in Nigeria.”
Additionally, the mobility company explained that it’s providing all the necessary support, including severance packages, to everyone affected by the recent changes to help them transition to career opportunities.
Furthermore, Bolt, which disputed the number of employees it reportedly laid off, says it has never laid off any staff, and it’s not currently doing so nor is it planning any in the future.
It assured that the difficult decision to discontinue collaboration with some of its staff would not reduce the quality of its products for riders and drivers.
Technext said Bolt would likely exit Nigeria or limit its services to only Lagos and Abuja after futile attempts to hold on, mainly through cost-cutting measures. However, reiterating its confidence in its investment commitments throughout all the markets in which it is present in Africa, Bolt says it sees great potential in Nigeria, indicating that it has no plans to leave the market.
In February 2023, the same publication broke the news about Bolt laying off 20 of its 70 Nigerian staff. Most of them were junior and mid-level employees.
Bolt, through its People Manager, Afolake Ismaila, told the affected employees that the reason for the downsizing was so the company could restructure its Nigerian operations.
