BT sheds more than 11,000 jobs over the past year as it ramps up cost-cutting drive

Updated: 07:50 EDT, 5 November 2026 BT Group has axed more than 11,000 jobs in the past year, with further cuts likely as its boss refused to rule out redundancies as part of its takeover of TalkTalk. Fresh figures show the firm cut its UK workforce, including staff and contractors, by 11 per cent to 90,000 over the past year. That saw 11,712 UK BT roles slashed, with more than 7,700 losses within the past six months as it trimmed resources following the peak of its Openreach network build. BT plans to cut its workforce to between 65,000 and 70,000 by 2030, excluding its international operations, as part of an overhaul by boss Allison Kirkby. The reduction in roles helped to push the group's pre-tax profits up 12 per cent to £1.1billion in the six months to September 2026, while revenue grew 1 per cent to £8.8billion.But BT's debt pile has ballooned by £1billion, reaching £21billion, results showed. Job cuts: BT Group has axed more than 11,700 jobs in the past yearOn Thursday, Kirkby refused to rule out job cuts among 900 TalkTalk employees joining BT, defending its controversial £400m rescue deal as 'unprecedented'. The BT boss told reporters she could not guarantee the jobs would be protected while the deal remained under regulatory review. The telecoms giant bought TalkTalk’s consumer and wholesale businesses out of administration in October, which is estimated to increase its share of the market from 29 per cent to 35 per cent. But it has come under scrutiny amid fears that costs for customers would rise as a result, while rival Virgin Media O2, which itself axed thousands of jobs this week, labelled the deal a 'stitch up'. BT's deal with TalkTalk is currently under review after Labour's culture secretary Lisa Nandy intervened on public interest grounds, citing the risk that TalkTalk’s demise could disrupt hospitals and other critical infrastructure. On Tuesday, Virgin Media O2 confirmed plans to ramp up its cost-cutting drive, targeting savings of £800million a year by 2029.It said the bulk of the cost savings – about £300 million – will come from job cuts, with aims to reduce labour costs by around 30 per cent. It did not disclose how many jobs would be cut. DIY INVESTING PLATFORMSAJ BellAJ BellEasy investing and ready-made portfoliosHargreaves LansdownHargreaves LansdownFree fund dealing and investment ideasinteractive investorinteractive investorFlat-fee investing from £4.99 per monthFreetradeFreetradeInvesting Isa now free on basic planTrading 212Trading 212Free share dealing and no account feeAffiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence.Compare the best investing account for you