The cafe chain told staff on Thursday, September 3 that it will be starting consultations which could affect more than a tenth of roles.

It comes due to continued uncertainty over when trade will fully recover following the coronavirus lockdown which saw the company close nearly all of its 2,700 UK stores for six weeks.

The chain, owned by Coca Cola, said trade is “returning” after receiving a boost from the Government’s VAT reduction on food and non-alcoholic drinks, as well as the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.

Costa has announced that 1,650 jobs are under threat due to a fall in sales caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

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The restructuring will see the removal of the assistant store manager role but Costa stressed that it will seek to find those at risk alternative jobs within the company.

Neil Lake, managing director for Costa Coffee UK & Ireland, said: “Today’s announcement to our store teams was an extremely difficult decision to make.

“Our baristas are the heart of the Costa business and I am truly sorry that many now face uncertainty following today’s news.

“We have had to make these difficult decisions to protect the business and ensure we safeguard as many jobs as possible for our 16,000 team members, whilst emerging stronger ready for future growth.

“I want to say a huge thank you to all of our team members that are affected by this announcement and we will be supporting you throughout this process.”

The decision comes a week after rival Pret A Manger revealed it was slashing 2,800 jobs.

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Costa reveals that over 1,000 jobs are under threat following the coronavirus pandemic

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.