BT Has Cut Almost 8,000 Jobs Since March as Profit Rises

BT has cut almost 8,000 jobs since the end of March 2026, the British telecoms group said on Thursday 5 November, as it reported higher profit and raised its cost-savings target. The Guardian said the figures were set out alongside BT's half-year results.

BT said its workforce had fallen by 7,731 to 90,000, excluding staff in its international business. Two years ago, including contractors, the group had about 130,000 people. Most of the recent reductions have been at Openreach, the division that runs BT's network infrastructure.

The company has now raised its cost-savings target from £3bn by 2029 to £3.7bn by 2030. It expects its headcount to fall to between 75,000 and 80,000 by the end of the decade. The prospect of job losses is not new: in 2023, BT said that introducing artificial intelligence across its business could eliminate the equivalent of about 10,000 roles.

Pre-tax profit rose 12% to £1.1bn in the six months to the end of September. BT shares climbed by as much as 6% in early trading on Thursday, touching a five-year high. The shares have risen by more than 70% since Allison Kirkby became chief executive in February 2024.

Kirkby's pay and bonus package more than doubled last year, to £5.6m, according to the Guardian.

BT is also reorganising its international arm. That business is being spun out into a joint venture with the US telecoms company Verizon. Separately, BT has agreed a £400m takeover of its rival TalkTalk, which employs about 900 people.

On the network side, BT's Openreach full-fibre network now reaches 24.1m homes. The company is targeting 25m homes by the end of the year.