Rogers to lay off 900

Canadian telecom giant Rogers Communications Inc. is reportedly set to lay off 900 middle-management positions as part of a corporate restructuring designed to streamline the company’s operations.
According to the Financial Post, the jobs cuts would impact about 3% of Rogers’ approximately 30,000 employees across Canada. Rogers’ operations include wireline and wireless telecommunications as well as cable television.
Rogers, which is currently Canada’s largest wireless operator, first noted the reorganization plans in September when it announced plans to integrate its cable and wireless business and created a separate emerging business and corporate development group.
“Our industry is in transition with products and networks converging product cycles maturing and customer expectations increasing. To remain the industry leader, we need to work and operate differently,” said Nadir Mohamed, Rogers’ president and CEO. “These changes position us to continue to compete and win and reflect an important, continued evolution of our business.”
The cuts come amidst changes in the Canadian wireless market that has seen Rogers’ wireless rivals Telus Mobility and Bell Canada recently launch HSPA+ networks to compete against Rogers’ similar offering. The move has allowed both rivals to launch Apple Inc.’s iPhone, which had been exclusive to Rogers.
In addition, a number of new wireless operators are set to launch service in the country, which is dominated by the Big 3 wireless operators. One of those operators, Globalive Communications Corp.’s Wind, was set to launch service last month when the Canadian government stepped in claiming the company did not meet regulations on foreign ownership rules. The matter is currently pending before government regulators.