Rogers reportedly offering buyouts to half of staff

Rogers is reportedly offering buyouts to half of its employees, marking one of the largest job reduction efforts in years.

The company had 25,000 employees at the end of last year, which included roughly 3,000 Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), though MLSE workers won’t be eligible for the buyouts.

Per the Globe and Mail, Rogers announced on Monday that it would offer voluntary departure packages to 50 per cent of employees. However, the company did not specify a reduction target. Instead, the company says it’s trying to adjust costs based on “business realities.”

“We are taking steps to adjust our cost structure to reflect the business realities of the current environment. As part of this, some teams have chosen to offer voluntary departure and retirement programs to give some employees the choice to decide whether they’d like to stay with the company or begin a new chapter,” Rogers spokesperson Zac Carreiro told the Globe.

Along with MLSE, some of Rogers’ other business units aren’t eligible for the buyouts, including the company’s on-air talent, Sportsnet employees, union employees, and Toronto Blue Jays employees.

The news comes on the heels of the company’s announcement that it would reduce its capital spending by 30 per cent to between $2.5 and $2.7 billion, down from between $3.3 and $3.5 billion. The company cited the “punitive” regulatory environment and competitive pressure for the decline.

Meanwhile, Rogers reported a 10 per cent increase in total services revenue, including an 82 per cent increase in revenue from its media division, in its Q1 2026 earnings report (the large media increase is attributed to MLSE no longer being included in the media division). However, wireless and cable revenues were only up two and one per cent, respectively. The company blamed “aggressive discounting” from competitors for weak performance metrics. However, Rogers’ wireless average revenue per user (ARPU) declined by slightly more than a $1 year-over-year, falling to $55.60.

Over the last several weeks, we’ve seen providers like Freedom Mobile offer extremely compelling deals to customers, such as a $40/250GB plan with CAN/US/MEX calling, data, and text, as well as included roaming features, significantly undercutting similar plans from incumbents (at the time of writing, Rogers charged $80-$95 for similar plans). However, Freedom is looking to spend $700 million this year as it expands its network.

Moreover, the Rogers buyouts are the latest in a long stream of job reductions from the company. Earlier this year, Rogers laid off around 100 internal IT workers. Last year, the company pulled a contract with Foundever, impacting the jobs of nearly 1,000 Canadians, laid off some 400 customer support workers, and more before that. And Rogers isn’t the only one, with Bell and Telus also laying off hundreds of workers in recent months. In February, an alliance of telecom workers called for legislation to protect Canadian telecom jobs from outsourcing.

Update April 27, 2026, at 7:33 p.m. ET: Added some additional information and context regarding Rogers employees that aren’t eligible for buyouts, and about Rogers Q1 financials.

Source: The Globe and Mail