Bell Canada parent company slashing nearly 700 jobs as part of ongoing reorganization

Bell Canada parent company slashing nearly 700 jobs as part of ongoing reorganization

BCE says the cuts represent about 1% of its total workforce

Bell Canada's parent company, BCE, has confirmed it is cutting another 690 jobs as part of a reorganization effort that began late last year.

The company says the cuts include about 230 unionized roles, and that in most cases employees are being offered voluntary separation packages.

"These changes are part of our ongoing business operations and reflect several initiatives," Bell said in an email to CBC News, "including the migration of customers to a more resilient, easier-to-maintain fibre network and ongoing operating efficiencies."

Bell Canada offering severance packages to 1,200 unionized employees

Bell cut nearly 700 jobs last November, mostly non-unionized management positions, from across the country.

BCE annouced last October that it was seeking to find $1.5 billion in total cost savings by 2028 through a "companywide transformation and continued focus on operational efficiencies."

Bell Canada to build largest AI data centre in Canada south of Regina

In 2024, BCE slashed nine per cent of its workforce, affecting about 4,800 jobs, as part of a shakeup that also saw it offload dozens of radio stations and end multiple television newscasts.

That came after the elimination of around 1,300 positions — about three per cent of its workforce at the time — in June 2023.

Last month, BCE reported a profit attributable to common shareholders of $616 million or 66 cents per diluted share in its latest quarter. That compared with a profit of $630 million or 68 cents per diluted share in the first quarter of 2025.

During an earnings call, BCE chief executive Mirko Bibic said the company has raised its revenue target for its growing AI business by one-third as it moves forward with plans to build a cluster of data centres.

Checking out the political optics of Bell's AI data centre near Regina

Bell Canada to begin construction on Canada's largest AI data centre near Regina this spring

BCE now expects to generate around $2 billion in revenue from its portfolio of AI-powered enterprise solutions by 2028. That's up from its previous objective of $1.5 billion in revenue over three years.

Along with fibre, wireless and digital media, the company has pointed to AI-powered enterprise solutions as a key pillar of the three-year plan.

With files from The Canadian Press