Frustration over BCE Inc.’s 4,800 job cuts earlier this year spilled over at the company’s annual general meeting on Thursday, as investors and employees questioned executives on their compensation during a period of belt-tightening for staff.

But board chair Gordon Nixon and Bell Canada president and CEO Mirko Bibic defended the decision, with the former referring to last year as a “challenging but also very transformational year” for the Montreal-based telecom and media giant.

Bell announced the job cuts in February amid a restructuring plan that saw it sell 45 of its 103 radio stations and close 107 The Source stores. The move drew widespread backlash, including from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who specifically called the 440 eliminated media positions at the company a “garbage decision.”