Q: How many IBMers need to volunteer for corporate guillotine?

IBM UK is looking to chop the Technical Services Support team within the Global Technology Services division by up to 10 per cent, according to company insiders.

An Employee Consultation Committee, comprised of management and employees elected by their peers to act as workforce reps, was formed last month as the latest expense purge takes shape.

A voluntary redundancy scheme was more recently opened giving anyone that wants to leave the organisation with a statutory minimum pay-off the option to do so.

Now sources have told us that IBM has decided it needs to shed a total of 47 TSS heads by hook or crook – if it meets that quota, there will be no compulsory layoffs.

"Forty-seven people are to depart one way or another," one source close to the matter told The Register. "Morale is not going to improve under the current management. It won't change after these cuts."

Staff had until 2 March to express an interest in exiting the business. Letters to leavers will be distributed on Wednesday and the actual leave date is 12 June.

IBM has not grown turnover globally for 20 quarters, and in GTS is axing jobs in mature economies and sending roles to places where it is cheaper to employ replacements.

Outside of this redundancy programme, IBM is squeezing remote workers to come back into one of a number of "colocation hubs" and work "shoulder to shoulder" with colleagues. This move was interpreted by some as a means to encourage more staff to leave. ®