Time Warner Cable finance jobs in Charlotte may be relocated after Charter merger

Time Warner Cable has told finance employees in Charlotte that their jobs could be affected by its upcoming merger with Charter Communications. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2015.

An unspecified number of finance functions could be relocated to St. Louis, Denver and Stamford, Conn., Time Warner management told employees Monday. Charter, the No. 4 U.S. cable provider, is based in Stamford.

It’s unclear whether some of the jobs affected will be eliminated altogether.

“Speculation about the impact on a specific number of employees in terms of our Charlotte-based jobs is premature,” said Scott Pryzwansky, a Time Warner Cable spokesman.

Charter announced in May it intends to buy Time Warner Cable, and analysts have said the merger could bring local layoffs as the combined company looks to reduce costs. Time Warner Cable employs about 3,140 in the local market, including at administrative offices on Arrowood Road and in Ballantyne.

The company told employees it’s possible affected finance positions will remain in Charlotte for a time even after the merger closes, and others could remain permanently. Time Warner Cable employs about 1,500 total in its corporate finance group nationwide. Pryzwansky did not specify how many work in Charlotte.

“The finance department at New Charter will certainly still have a presence in Charlotte,” said Charter spokesman Justin Venech.

The largest number of Time Warner Cable’s Charlotte employees are those involved in operating the local cable system, the company said. Other functions housed in the company’s Charlotte offices include human resources and information technology. No decisions have been announced about where those functions will be located.

Time Warner Cable is the nation’s second-largest cable provider. The merged company would still be second, behind Comcast. Time Warner Cable’s shareholders approved the approximately $55 billion takeover by Charter on Monday, though the deal still needs to be approved by federal regulators.

New York-based Time Warner Cable is the Charlotte area’s dominant cable provider, with about 480,000 area customers. Charter serves about 130 markets in North Carolina, including Lincolnton, Hickory and Asheville.

Time Warner Cable started launching a faster-speed Internet service, TWC Maxx, in July and said it plans to roll out the rest of the upgrade in five waves across the Charlotte area.

This story was originally published September 22, 2015 at 12:36 PM with the headline "Time Warner Cable finance jobs in Charlotte may be relocated after Charter merger."