Layoffs at Rogers due to restructuring after Shaw merger

Samfiru Tumarkin LLP learned that Rogers laid off multiple employees on June 22 due to restructuring, with a number of former Shaw Communications employees receiving pink slips around the week of June 26.

A Rogers spokesperson confirmed to The Globe and Mail on June 28 that a “small percentage” of the company’s workforce has exited.

“Since coming together with Shaw, we’ve been looking at the structure of the combined company and identified some overlap in corporate roles,” Sarah Schmidt said in a statement.

“While we always try to find other roles for our people, a small percentage of our employees have left the company. As we continue to integrate with Shaw, we’ll thoughtfully minimize duplicate roles and hire staff to support our customers and build our networks.”

While it remains unclear how many employees at the media giant have lost their jobs, our employment lawyers are following up with affected staff to assess their severance packages and ensure that they are receiving full and proper compensation.

Layoff follows merger

The layoffs follow on the heels of Rogers’ acquisition of Shaw Communications for $20 billion — the largest takeover in Canadian telecom history to date.

The merger, which was approved by the federal government on March 31, contained a number of conditions for Rogers, and required Shaw to sell Freedom Mobile to Videotron for over $2.8 billion.

Other big names shedding staff

The job cuts at Rogers come amid a flurry of layoffs in 2023.

Several major North American companies, including BMO, Loblaw, Ritual, Suncor Energy, Meta, LinkedIn, and Hudson’s Bay, are significantly scaling back their staffing levels as they continue to navigate challenging economic conditions.

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• Shopify employees launch $130M class action following layoffs
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• Layoffs in Canada

Termination agreements for Rogers employees

In Canada, non-unionized employees and senior executives working at Rogers are owed full severance pay when they lose their jobs due to downsizing, corporate restructuring, or the closure of the business.

This includes individuals working full-time, part-time, or hourly in Ontario, Alberta, and B.C.

Severance can be as much as 24 months’ pay, depending on a number of factors.

LEARN MORE
• Severance for federally regulated employees
• Severance packages in mass layoffs
• Severance packages for tech workers

WATCH: Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru explains what rights employees have if they are being fired or let go on an episode of the Employment Law Show.

Before you accept any severance offer, have an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP review it and your employment contract.

We can tell you if what you have been provided is fair and how to get proper compensation if it falls short of what you are actually owed.

If you aren’t given the full amount, which happens often, you have been wrongfully dismissed and are entitled to compensation.

In some cases, employers pressure staff into accepting poor severance packages, such as imposing a deadline for accepting the offer.

Non-unionized employees in Canada have up to two years from the date of their dismissal to pursue a claim for full severance pay.