Bell Media has announced plans to cut nearly 50 unionized positions, according to Unifor, the union representing the affected workers.
The restructuring, part of Bell Media’s “Willow” plan, involves relocating news stations CP24, BNN, and NewsTalk 1010 from downtown Toronto to to the northeastern part of the city and consolidating them with existing CTV operations.
“This is a corporation that has made billions of profits at the end of last year and they continue to carry on with their profit-over-people principle,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. She criticized the decision as a significant setback for journalism and democracy, potentially creating more news deserts across Canada.
The job cuts will affect a range of production roles, including ENG editors, media services coordinators, graphics artists, and AV technicians. This move follows a series of layoffs by Bell Media, including the termination of 1,300 media jobs in June 2023 and 4,800 positions in February 2024, which included 100 media-related roles.
Unifor launched its “Shame on Bell” campaign earlier this year to protest these cuts and the BCE Board’s focus on shareholder payouts while reducing its media workforce. The campaign highlights the union’s ongoing efforts to advocate for workers’ rights and media sustainability.
This latest round of layoffs is the second major blow to local news in Canada this month. On June 12, Corus Entertainment Inc. laid off 35 Unifor members at Global News as part of its restructuring efforts. These layoffs were in addition to 11 members who were already laid off earlier in 2024.
Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union, represents more than 10,000 media workers, including 5,000 in the broadcast and film industries.