Nearly four dozen former Bell employees are taking its parent company to court, accusing BCE of wrongfully firing them as part of a larger round of cost-cutting. The 46 employees are seeking a combined total of $6 million in damages.
Lawsuit Alleges Coordinated Mass Layoff
According to legal documents filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice last week, the complainants said they were among “employees across Canada” who were turfed with “cause,” but the terminations were “purely driven by economic considerations and formed part of a coordinated mass layoff,” the Globe and Mail reported.
In May, Bell claimed it fired a “small number” of employees who had engaged in what they called “swipe and go” behaviour — an act where employees use their badges to enter the building to meet in-office attendance requirements, then immediately leave. The company’s post-pandemic return to office policy requires employees to work in-office at least three times a week. Bell said the employees violated its code of conduct by intentionally faking workplace attendance.
Ex-Employees Say Bell Tolerated Conduct
However, the ex-employees’ lawsuit argues that Bell is targeting conduct it tolerated for a long time before deeming it a fireable offence. Bell said the firings were strictly about breaches in its code of conduct. The lawsuit alleges that there was a more coordinated effort going on behind the scenes.
The lawsuit noted the timing of the employee terminations. It alleged the firings happened as a Bell hiring freeze was in place, and the company was making cuts elsewhere — including a recent announcement of cutting 700 jobs as part of its three-year growth plan.
Bell claimed internal investigations were thorough and any managers found approving the attendance workarounds were fired as well.
Damages Sought Range from $18,000 to $350,000
A majority of the 46 complainants are based in the Greater Toronto Area. They are seeking damages ranging from $18,000 to $350,000, which depends on salary and years of service. Bell has 20 days to file a formal response.
