Bell parent BCE to cut nearly 700 jobs as it pursues growth strategy

BCE Inc., the parent company of Bell Canada, is reducing its workforce by nearly 700 employees across roles and locations in Canada as part of its three-year growth strategy.

The reductions include layoffs affecting 460 non-union employees, including some management roles. Bell has also offered voluntary departure packages to unionized employees, with a target of eliminating 230 positions. The reductions had begun to be communicated to staff in recent weeks.

Bell Media will not be affected, according to the company.

Fibre network and operating efficiencies

A Bell spokesperson said the workforce changes form part of a strategy intended to support sustainable growth in a highly competitive market. The company linked the move to several initiatives, including moving customers onto a fibre network it described as more resilient and easier to maintain, along with continuing operating efficiencies.

The cuts come during a period of job losses across the telecommunications industry. The report cited slower immigration, which has reduced the number of potential new customers, and lower mobile plan prices, which have constrained revenue growth.

Bell reported 38,683 employees at the end of 2025 in its latest annual report. It said 39 per cent of that workforce was unionized.

AI investment remains part of Bell’s growth plans

The announced workforce reduction is occurring alongside Bell’s investment in artificial-intelligence business offerings. In May, Bell executives said the company planned to sell assets and redirect proceeds towards growth opportunities, particularly its AI business offerings.

Bell is spending $1.7-billion to build an AI data centre in Saskatchewan. While the company has presented AI as a growth area, it specifically attributed the current cuts to its broader strategy, fibre-network migration and operating efficiencies.

In May, BCE reported higher first-quarter revenue but lower net earnings. The company said the results reflected the addition of its U.S. fibre internet business and improved media revenue, while its telecommunications division declined.

Previous workforce actions

This is not BCE’s first recent workforce reduction. Last November, the company said it was laying off 650 non-unionized employees. Before that, in February, it offered severance packages to 1,200 unionized employees across Canada, citing unprecedented challenges in Canada’s telecommunications industry.

Separately, Bell said it terminated a small number of employees earlier this year for alleged code-of-conduct violations involving workplace attendance records. An employment law firm said at the time that it had heard from a few dozen former Bell employees affected by that separate matter.

Bell said it continues to invest in business areas it considers growth drivers and that those investments are creating hundreds of new jobs across Canada.

Sources

• Bell Canada parent cutting work force by nearly 700 employees - The Globe and Mail