Lloyds planning to axe 625 UK jobs in cost-cutting plan - Union

LONDON (Reuters) - State-backed Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L) is axing about 625 jobs, according to the Unite union, making a further round of job losses under an aggressive cost-cutting plan.

The cuts apply mainly to back office roles and more than 80 IT roles will be transferred from Britain to India, Unite said.

"Unite has made it clear that 'efficiency' cannot simply mean axing more jobs while expecting the same work to fall on fewer shoulders," Unite said. "The bank forgets that these relentless cuts have a human cost."

The job cuts are part of the reduction of about 9,000 roles, roughly 10 percent of its workforce, announced two years ago.

Lloyds said there would be a net reduction of 430 jobs when newly created roles are included. It is closing 21 branches in July as customers increasingly bank online and more functions are automated.

Lloyds was rescued with a 20.5 billion pound taxpayer-funded bailout during the 2007-09 financial crisis, leaving the state holding 43 percent. The government has since reduced its holding to less than 10 percent, raising around 16 billion pounds.

Earlier this year, Lloyds rewarded investors with a surprise 2 billion pound payout, as the bank moves closer to returning to private hands.

Unite said the latest job losses will be followed by a recruitment freeze in several divisions, while many staff will have to go through a new assessment process, increasing fears of further cuts.The union said three out of four staff were reporting symptoms of stress, while four out of five are working unpaid overtime every week.

"Where it is necessary for employees to leave the company, it will look to achieve this by offering voluntary redundancy,” Lloyds said in a statement. "Compulsory redundancies will always be a last resort."

(Reporting By Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Sinead Cruise/Ruth Pitchford)