Legal experts question ‘for cause’ terminations tied to office badge use
Bell Canada parent BCE Inc. has fired what it describes as “a small number” of employees for allegedly violating its code of conduct by intentionally and repeatedly falsifying workplace attendance.
The company says the workers were entering offices, swiping in with their key cards to register their presence and then immediately leaving the premises, conduct it characterizes as “swipe and go” behaviour, according to a Globe and Mail report.
The alleged violations occurred in offices across the country and included one case in which an employee swiped their card just before midnight and again shortly after the hour to suggest they had been in the office two days in a row.
The company says another instance involved an employee entering the premises, using the fitness facilities and then leaving, according to the Globe.
allegations investigated across the country
“In each case, there was a thorough investigation and individuals were presented with clear evidence of their misconduct,” said Bell spokesperson Luc Levasseur.
“The majority of individuals admitted to deliberate and repeated falsification of workplace attendance,” he told the Globe and Mail, and no unionized employees were affected.
The company is treating the dismissals as “for cause,” according to Bell. Levasseur also said there is no broader work force reduction program under way, and Bell maintains a three‑day in‑office policy for most of its corporate employees.
‘For cause’ dismissals
In Canadian employment law, “for cause” dismissals are considered rare because they carry serious consequences, including the loss of severance entitlements, Tara Vasdani, managing partner and employment lawyer with Remote Law Canada, told the Globe and Mail.
“Traditionally, the courts have reserved findings of cause for serious misconduct such as theft, fraud, dishonesty or other conduct that irreparably damages the employment relationship,” she said.
However, Vasdani said cases of this kind are “highly fact-specific” and turn on factors such as whether expectations were clearly communicated and whether the employer enforced its policies consistently across the workforce, according to the article.
Culture of ‘coffee badging’ under scrutiny
Employment law firm Samfiru Tumarkin told the Globe that it has been contacted by former Bell employees, some with many years of service, who allege they were fired for “coffee badging.”
“The message we’re hearing in some cases is that this wasn’t a secret – it was a workplace culture often encouraged by their own managers,” spokesperson Ryan Bonnar said in an email. “These employees believed that as long as they completed their work and hit their targets, their physical location was secondary.”
Samfiru Tumarkin employment lawyer Teilen Celentano said the case law around this type of termination is still relatively new because the issue has largely arisen in recent years as employers called staff back to the office, according to the Globe and Mail.
One legal challenge in these disputes is determining the extent to which managers may have condoned behaviour such as “swipe and go,” he said.
Today, BCE released its first quarter results for 2026, stating that operating revenues were $6.17 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up 4.0 per cent from a year earlier, with adjusted EBITDA increasing 2.9 per cent to $2.63 billion. The company said net earnings were $667 million, down 2.3 per cent, while adjusted net earnings were $589 million, contributing to free cash flow of $804 million, up 0.8 per cent.
