Toronto, On – Tim Hortons, the iconic Canadian coffee retailer, is in the throes of a public relations disaster in Ontario. On January 1st, the Ontario government raised the minimum wage to $14.00 an hour and numerous Tim Horton outlets including two owned by heirs to the donut empire, Ron Joyce Jr and Jeri Lyn Horton-Joyce, immediately took punitive measures against their employees. They began to eliminate workers paid breaks, reduce access to basic drug and dental benefits, eliminate uniform and drink allowances and even cut employees’ hours of work. The Ontario Federation of Labour and its affiliates responded today with information picket lines outside targeted Tim Horton’s outlets in Toronto.
“This is outrageous coming from a wildly profitable multinational corporation,” said a disgusted OFL President Chris Buckley. “Ontario’s new labour laws were intended to improve the wages and working conditions of employees – especially those at the lowest rungs of the income ladder.”
“Low wages maximize profits, end of story,” said IAM Canadian General Vice President Stan Pickthall. “Tim Horton’s generated $3 billion US in revenue for its parent company Restaurant Brands International but it will deny its workers a decent wage. This is simply corporate greed at its worst.”
Cutline…The Ontario Federation of Labour and its affiliates staged an information picket outside of targeted Tim Horton outlets across Toronto to protest the iconic Canadian coffee retailers punitive actions against its workers in response to an increase in the minimum hourly wage.
