Canadian telecommunications company Bell (TSX: BCE) will offer voluntary separation packages to approximately 1,200 unionized employees, citing “unprecedented challenges” in the industry, the company said Tuesday.
The buyouts, which do not affect Bell Media staff, follow the company’s largest restructuring in almost 30 years. In February 2024, Bell cut 9% of its workforce or 4,800 jobs, announced plans to sell 45 radio stations, and close more than 100 The Source stores.
The company’s workforce reductions began in June 2023 with 1,300 job cuts, which Bell attributed to efforts toward “greater collaboration and efficiency” in news delivery. CEO Mirko Bibic later revealed that CTV conventional stations had lost over $180 million in 2023.
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Unifor national president Lana Payne criticized the move as a “damaging stunt to temporarily reduce costs,” while Bell defended the program as a less disruptive way for employees to retire or pursue new opportunities.
The company attributes these new reductions to organizational changes and the transition to fiber networks, saying it continues to invest in areas that “enhance the customer experience and grow the business.”
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