Telecommunications, media and sports giant Rogers Communications Inc. confirmed to CBC News on Monday that it is offering voluntary buyouts to about 10,000 eligible employees.

“We are taking steps to adjust our cost structure to reflect the business realities of the current environment,” the company said in a statement.

“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 Communications did not confirm how many people it expects will take the buyout offer, but the company previously stated, in its 2025 annual report, that it employs about 25,000 workers.

The job reduction, first reported by The Globe and Mail, comes after the company said in its quarterly report last week it plans to cut capital spending by 30 per cent compared with last year, citing a “punitive” regulatory environment and competitive pressures.

Rogers is offering buyouts to some teams in its business units and its corporate functions, but on-air talent, Sportsnet employees at Rogers Sports and Media, Toronto Blue Jays employees and unionized workers will not be eligible.

Patrick Horan, a senior portfolio manager and principal at Agilith Capital, says the move isn’t surprising because it’s a company that is “still fairly highly levered that just isn’t growing.” 

He said Rogers is in a risky position if interest rates go up and it has to refinance its debt.

“[The] cost of the Shaw acquisition is going to get just more and more expensive, as they don’t have the free cash flow to pay back the loan,” Horan told CBC News. “So, they’ve had to do something.”

Rogers acquired former rival Shaw Communications in a $26-billion deal that was finalized in August 2023. 

The federal government signed off on the deal, but under a number of conditions, including that the company maintain a headquarters in Calgary, where Shaw was based, for at least 10 years, and that it create 3,000 new jobs in Western Canada within the first five years after the closing date and maintain those positions until the deal’s 10th anniversary.

Rogers reaffirmed that commitment in its last annual report.

Horan said Rogers needs to bring down its operating costs in order to boost cash flow. 

“Employees are the biggest expense when it comes to that,” he said. 

On an investor call last week, chief financial officer Glenn Brandt said he expects there to be “some restructuring costs” — partly related to the “reduction in capital spend.”

Rogers shares closed Monday afternoon at $49.85, up 1.2 per cent from the end of trading on Friday. 

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