Tim Hortons says it is scaling back its reliance on temporary foreign workers, citing the easing of “acute labour shortages” that stemmed from the COVID pandemic.
The restaurant chain made the announcement in a release on Monday announcing a new hiring campaign that aims to employ 10,000 new local team members.
“As Canada emerged from COVID in 2021, there were acute labour shortages across the country,” the release states. “To address this, the government increased access to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.
“Tim Hortons was one of the companies encouraging the government to do so at the time to help restaurants facing staffing challenges and lobbied them to maintain greater access when they announced plans to limit applications.
“However, today in 2026, with high youth unemployment nationally, lobbying for expanded access is no longer necessary.”
Tim Hortons notes that restaurant owners’ use of the program “has already declined steadily” since 2024.
It says currently out of 110,000 employees, around 4,000 were hired through the temporary workers program. That represents about 3.6 per cent of all employees.
“These are positions in communities where restaurant owners faced documented labour shortages and went through the full government approval process before hiring,” the company adds.
“Restaurant owners understand the need for continued rigour and scrutiny for any new temporary foreign worker applications.”
Last September, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called on the Liberals to scrap the temporary foreign worker program, saying it has caused an employment crisis among young Canadians.
Poilievre singled out Tim Hortons in his denouncement.
The company responded, saying at the time less than five per cent of workers were hired through the program, “generally in small towns and communities where local candidates are not available.”
With files from The Canadian Press
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