Johannesburg — PETROLEUM company Total SA is considering laying off about 10%, or 80, of its employees as part of its restructuring programme.

The move lays bare the vulnerability of so-called established sectors to the difficult business conditions, and comes less than a month after telecommunications giant MTN also announced its plans to reduce its workforce.

Total SA has a network of 530 service stations across SA.

It said yesterday that, like other petroleum industry players, it was experiencing "major business challenges" that have prompted it to embark on a business improvement and restructuring programme.

"The need to restructure arises from various factors such as the market in which the company operates, competition, increases in costs and declining profits."

It said it was offering a number of options to employees who might be affected, including severance pay, voluntary retrenchment and early retirement. It said it would offer "an assistance allowance" to employees who did not apply for voluntary retrenchment or early retirement.