Executives at Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE) awarded themselves more than $5 million in bonuses — including nearly $2.4 million to CEO Mirko Bibic — despite thousands of job cuts and a 30 per cent drop in the company’s stock, Unifor said this week.
The bonuses, disclosed shortly after BCE’s latest round of job reductions, have drawn sharp criticism from Canada’s largest private-sector union. “The company laid off thousands, its stock went down by 30 per cent and yet, the richest and most powerful continue to profit off the back of our members,” said Lana Payne, Unifor’s national president.
The union said the executive compensation announcement was made on April 1 — a timing it called “no joke” — as it renewed its “Shame on Bell” campaign launched in early 2024.
Mounting job losses
The campaign was sparked by BCE’s February 2024 decision to cut 4,800 jobs, including 800 unionized positions in telecommunications and media. It was the largest workforce reduction at the company in three decades.
Since then, Unifor said further cuts have continued across BCE’s operations, including 120 jobs at Expertech in October 2024, 50 positions at Bell Media in June 2024, and 1,300 roles in June 2023.
In February 2025, the union said it learned of another planned cut of up to 1,200 jobs in BCE’s telco division.
“Amidst this trade war, we need major Canadian companies to invest in good jobs at home,” said Payne. “Bell continues to fall short when they should be making a long-term plan on a thriving workforce.”
Parliamentary scrutiny
Bibic appeared before the House of Commons Heritage Committee in April 2024 to respond to concerns about mass layoffs. Unifor said he failed to justify the cuts, especially as BCE raised its dividend payout to a record $3.7 billion in 2023.
Unifor, which represents more than 19,000 workers at BCE and its subsidiaries — and over 2,100 at Bell Media — held a rally in Ottawa last spring after the company postponed a scheduled appearance before the committee.
The union has long accused BCE of “hollowing out” its workforce in pursuit of short-term shareholder returns.
