TSB is axing the role of dedicated cashiers in its branches, affecting more than 900 staff, after a steep decline in customer visits because of the Covid-19 pandemic. A total of 929 staff are affected, a TSB spokesman confirmed, adding that employees were being given a choice as it phased out non-specialist roles. Cashiers have been told their jobs will be phased out early next year, the TBU union told Reuters. Affected branch staff were told they would have to retrain, change roles or take voluntary redundancy, according to a staff memo. Banks across the industry are looking to cut costs in the face of an expected spike in loan losses resulting from the pandemic. TSB’s Spanish parent Sabadell said in July it was looking at accelerating cost-cutting at the British business, after its subsidiary posted a €64m (£57.5m) loss for the first half of the year. “TSB was already facing major cost problems and this looks like them jumping on the bandwagon, using the pandemic as an excuse to get rid of these roles,” said the TBU general secretary, Mark Brown. “They don’t know whether people will return to branches once this pandemic is over.” In the staff memo, TSB encouraged affected employees to retrain for more complex roles involving helping customers to open accounts or to use digital services, adding that it expects fewer customers to use branches for basic transactions.