Last checked at 
(Corrects lead and 2nd paragraph to accurately reflect Fuller's
job cuts to about 350)
* M&B posts annual pretax loss of 32 mln stg
* Fuller's H1 loss 22.2 mln STG
* M&B to cut 1,300 jobs, Fuller's says total employees down
20%
By Yadarisa Shabong
Nov 26 (Reuters) - British pub operators Mitchells & Butlers
and Fuller, Smith & Turner posted millions in
financial losses on Thursday and said they had cut around 1,650
jobs as the hospitality industry reels from the past month's
re-tightening of COVID-19 restrictions.
The larger of the two, M&B, which owns All Bar One,
Harvester and Browns, said it had cut 1,300 jobs. Fuller's said
its total number of employees had been reduced by 20% following
about 350 job cuts, the sale of its pizza chain The Stable and
through natural attrition.
The companies said they have enough resources to operate in
the foreseeable future, but the downside scenarios cast doubts
about their ability to continue as going concerns.
"We are optimistic about the future in the medium term and
beyond, but there is no doubt that this will be a tough winter,"
Fuller's CEO Simon Emeny said.
Others in the industry have already reduced their workforce,
with Marston's planning to cut 2,150 jobs and cheap
beer specialist J D Wetherspoon has cut staff at its
head office and airport pubs.
Pubs, restaurants and hotels have been among the hardest hit
by the COVID-19 pandemic, with social distancing measures and
curfews hitting capacity even when establishments have not been
forced to shut altogether by lockdowns.
The current lockdown in England started on Nov. 5 and is set
to end on Dec. 2, but tough restrictions are expected to
continue in many areas, and pubs and restaurants in the toughest
third tier will only be allowed to reopen for takeaways.
M&B reported an adjusted pretax loss of 32 million pounds
($43 million) for the year ended Sept. 26 and Fuller's a
first-half loss of 22.2 million pounds.
With 1.56 billion pounds in net debt as of Sept. 26, M&B in
June had agreed to revised financing arrangements with its main
creditors to bolster its available reserves after avoiding a
debt default in April.
Fuller's, on the other hand, said it was confident it could
secure revisions in its debt covenants beyond December and get
credit lines beyond August.
Shares in the London-listed companies were flat in morning
trade, and M&B is on course to lose around 50% of its market
value and Fuller's 24% this year.
M&B employs about 44,000 people in 1,700 pubs across the
United Kingdom, while Fuller's employed 4,957 according to its
latest annual report.
($1 = 0.7472 pounds)
(Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong and Aakash Jagadeesh Babu in
Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi, Patrick Graham and Emelia
Sithole-Matarise)
