Former employees seeking more than $6 million in damages, alleging telecom used RTO crackdown to disguise cost-cutting strategy
Nearly 50 former Bell employees have launched legal action against parent company BCE Inc., alleging their dismissals for alleged attendance fraud were part of a broader cost-cutting strategy rather than a genuine code-of-conduct enforcement.
The 46 plaintiffs, most based in the Toronto area, filed documents last week in Ontario Superior Court of Justice claiming more than $6 million in damages combined, according to the Globe and Mail and Toronto Star. Their tenures ranged from two to 32 years, and their roles spanned sales, software engineering, project management and human resources.
Bell has maintained the terminations were for clear, individual violations of its code of conduct and were not economically motivated.
‘Swipe and go' allegations
Bell fired the employees for what it called "swipe and go" behaviour — using access badges to tap into the office to satisfy a three-days-per-week return-to-office requirement, then leaving immediately. The company said the conduct amounted to deliberate and repeated falsification of workplace attendance, warranting termination for cause — a finding that strips employees of severance entitlements.
But the tactics used were varied, according to a Bell insider who spoke to the Toronto Star. Some workers swiped access cards just before midnight and again minutes later to log attendance on two consecutive days. Others visited the office briefly to use the gym or grab a coffee — a practice known as "coffee badging" — before working from home for the remainder of the day.
The employees argue the company had for months or years tacitly accepted such arrangements before abruptly reversing course.
After condoning the practices, their lawyers argued in the filed documents, Bell made an "improper attempt to arbitrarily and retroactively impose disproportionate disciplinary measures," the Globe reported. The employees said they received no warnings before being fired and that the investigations were "procedurally unfair."
Mass layoffs at Bell
The lawsuit alleges the firings were not about conduct at all.
"What we are seeing here are massive rounds of economically motivated terminations," said Toronto employment lawyer Jean-Alexandre De Bousquet, who represents the workers. "It's like Bell can't fire people fast enough," he told the Star.
According to the statement of claim reported by the Star, a Bell whistleblower shared internal documents with De Bousquet showing written instructions to dismiss roughly 30 employees per office, with at least one per team targeted to set an example for remaining staff.
The terminations occurred while Bell was simultaneously implementing a company-wide hiring freeze and other cost-cutting measures, the Star reported. Last week, Bell announced it had cut nearly 700 jobs across its workforce as part of a three-year growth plan.
Was there misconduct?
Further raising questions about the process, many employees received nearly identical termination letters containing the same allegations and wording, the Star reported. Some letters allegedly referenced incorrect information or other workers' details — which the lawsuit argues demonstrates the dismissals were carried out as part of a corporate directive rather than through individual assessments.
Workers also say they were given little opportunity to respond to attendance records dating back months or years but Bell disputes the characterization of its process.
"In each case, there was a thorough investigation and individuals were presented with clear evidence of their misconduct. The majority of individuals admitted to deliberate and repeated falsification of workplace attendance," Bell spokesperson Ellen Murphy told the Globe.
The company also said managers who allowed or encouraged employees to work around the return-to-office policy were likewise dismissed.
Reasonable notice periods
The former employees are seeking compensation they say should have been paid during reasonable notice periods — damages ranging from roughly $18,000 to $350,000 depending on salary and tenure, according to the Star. None of the allegations have been tested in court.
Bell told the Globe it had not yet been served with the documents and therefore could not comment on specific points, but added it would "vigorously defend any allegations in court and exercise available legal remedies with respect to any frivolous claims."
BCE has 20 days to file a statement of defence once served, the Star reported.
