Britain’s Co-operative Bank has decided to axe 350 people and close 18 branches across the nation in response to the economic downturn caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The layoffs represent nearly 11% of the bank’s total workforce of 3,175 employees.

The lender is grappling with reduced earnings as Bank of England (BOE) – the country’s central bank – slashed the interest rates to a record low of 0.1%.

The cuts will primarily affect the head office and middle management roles as well as the staff working at the branches that are being closed.

Co-op Bank has already notified staff about the redundancies and branch closures, which will take effect by the end of the year.

Co-op Bank CEO Andrew Bester said: “We are not immune to the impact of recent events, with the historically low base rate affecting the income of all banks and a period of prolonged economic uncertainty ahead, which means it’s important we reduce costs and have the right-sized operating model in place for the future.

“At the same time, we are responding to the continuing shift of more and more customers choosing to bank online, with lower levels of transactions in branches, a trend which has been increasing for some time, across the banking sector and more broadly.”

Co-op Bank has introduced a staff consultation process and said that it would try to redeploy the employees wherever possible.

Bester added: “We will do all we can to support colleagues through the process with fairness and respect.”

Trade union Unite opposes the move

The British trade union Unite said it was “deeply disappointed” with the bank’s decision to cut jobs.

Unite said: “Job losses are always unwelcome, however, given the repeated restructuring exercises that this workforce has been through over the past 10 years the news today will be particularly painful.”