Call centre to bring more than 300 jobs to Derry

UK digital communications company EE has chosen Derry to develop a new call centre that is likely to create 333 jobs. Olaf Swantee, the company's chief executive, said the Derry call centre was the initial stage of its plan to return customer service jobs to the UK.

EE's new site in Derry will be managed by Convergys Corporation, a US company that operates 150 customer service centres across North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.

According to the North’s Minister for Enterprise Arlene Foster, the investment is expected to generate £5 million for the local economy annually.

Convergys chief commercial officer Mike Wooden said Invest NI had played a key role in convincing the US company to locate in Derry.

Sinead McLaughlin, chief of the Londonderry Chamber of Commerce, said: “This latest jobs announcement is another move in the right direction and we thank Invest NI for its assistance in making this possible.”

SDLP Foyle MP Mark Durkan described the investment as a “vote of confidence in Derry”. Sinn Féin MLA Maeve McLaughlin said she looked forward to the “outworking of the benefits” the new jobs would bring to the city’s economy