Despite the cuts, the taxpayer-backed bank is still hoping to pay its shareholders a dividend for 2014
Lloyds confirmed it would be cutting 9,000 jobs today – despite raking in a profit of £94 every second.
The taxpayer-rescued bank plans to shut 200 branches over the next three years, although 50 will open, because of the switch to online banking.
It is ditching a pledge not to axe branches but insists it will close fewer than its rivals and will still have the biggest overall network.
The latest jobs cull, around 10%, is on top of 43,000 posts lost since 2008.
Yet the blow for workers comes as Lloyds, which is still 25% owned by the taxpayer after a £20billion bail-out, announced a surge in fortunes.
Underlying profits leapt 41% to £2.1billion in the three months to the end of September, and nearly £6billion since the start of the year.
That was before the bank was forced to set aside yet another £900million to cover the cost of the payment protection insurance scandal.
The latest increase takes the bank’s estimated PPI bill to £11.3billion, although it warned this was likely to rise by another £600million by the end of the year.
Excluding PPI and other one-off costs, the bank made a £751million profit between July and September, or £94 a second, a big turnaround from a £440million loss the same time last year.
Lloyds’ boss Antonio Horta-Osorio said: “We have finished the strengthening and reshaping of the bank. Now we have to adapt to a new world.”
But Unite’s Rob MacGregor said: “These are deeply unsettling times for Lloyds staff, who after days of speculation and leaks face yet another round of job cuts and a future of uncertainty.
“Job cuts of approximately 10% could have unknown consequences on customer service and will put even more pressure on staff who have helped get the bank back on the right track.
“The wallets of top executives at Lloyds should not be getting fat by forcing low-paid workers on to the dole. If there are compulsory redundancies or customer service suffers, then executive pay should be cut.”
Around 7% of the job cuts since 2011 have been compulsory. The bank said most of the branches being shut were in built-up areas where an alternative was close by.
Lloyds Banking Group currently has 2,249 branches – 1,291 under the Lloyds Bank name, 665 Halifax outlets and 293 Bank of Scotland.
It was forced to sell 632 under the TSB name last year to satisfy EU state-aid rules after the bail-out at the height of the financial crisis.
Barclays has 1,545 branches, NatWest 1,391, HSBC 1,186 and Santander 1,144. Royal Bank of Scotland, which owns NatWest, also has 289 branches north of the border.
