Dish Network cutting nearly 500 Colorado jobs in January

Dish Network, the telecommunications giant based in the south Denver suburb Englewood, is laying off 499 people as the company’s business model faces multiple challenges.

The job cuts will begin Jan. 7 and will go on for two weeks, the company said in a letter to the Colorado Department of Labor in compliance with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, known as WARN. The cuts run the gamut from senior engineers and buyers to financial analysts, accountants, sales associates, and a chief marketing officer. 

Earlier this week, Dish told investors it lost 225,000 wireless customers in the third quarter, which was a lot more than anticipated. At the same time, the CEO announced his resignation. The company’s stock plunged amid the turmoil.

Dish is struggling to raise enough cash to finish building out its 5G wireless network. The company went on a borrowing spree to fund its ambitions when interest rates were low, saddling itself with billions of dollars of debt that comes due soon. Interest rates have since shot up to multi-decade highs, making it harder to refinance and take out new loans.

Wall Street analysts think Dish could eventually be forced into bankruptcy, though a filing isn’t imminent.