A Tik Tok video by a woman claiming to be a Tim Hortons employee who was fired after criticizing management for “only hiring Indians” may not be legit.But the discriminatory business practice of favouring certain skin colors and ethnic backgrounds, or low-wage foreign workers over able-bodied and willing Canadians not from a preferred background, is real.These practices violate anti-discrimination laws in place to protect equality in hiring.It's common to walk into establishments — from restaurants to retail stores to trucking companies — and see a predominance of employees from one ethnic background. Were they the most qualified applicants? Or were they hired because there’s a tendency within ethnic communities to favour their own over equally qualified outsiders?“Tim Hortons did me wrong,” said someone going by the name Amyia Davis in the video gone viral.“Just got fired from Tim Hortons after 4 years,” said Davis.“Just because I called out management for only hiring ‘Indians.’”“They only hire international students now days …”“So now I’m exposing everything they make us hide.”.The video, that enraged many among its millions of viewers, also alleged customers are ripped off by cost-saving measures such as recycling “beans from old brews” and that donuts and pastries aren’t fresh but frozen and reheated.However, the video “has been taken offline by Tik Tok as it was spam and not a legitimate post,” said Tim Hortons in an email to the Western Standard Saturday.Last May Tim Hortons celebrated its 60th anniversary since opening its first outlet in Hamilton, Ont.In August, the Toronto-based company reported its second-quarter income totalled US$399 million, up from net income of US$351million in the same quarter a year earlier.Canadian customers, craving a delicious Double-Double coffee and a donut, have been loyal to Tim Hortons despite its share of controversy and lawsuits. Tim Hortons generously contributes to charitable causes. But does it prioritize putting Canadian applicants on the payroll?Perhaps not enough, according to an August report on the Canadian food service industry published by Bloomberg that created a backlash.The report revealed that in recent years Tim Hortons wasn’t alone in increasing hiring temporary foreign workers through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.It concluded this trend in Canadian businesses contributes to Canadian youths having no luck finding summer jobs.Between 2019 and 2023 foreign workers approved to work in Canada’s food and retail sectors spiralled by 211%. Tim Hortons said it hired 714 temporary foreign workers in 2022, compared to 58 in 2019.However, Tim Hortons told Bloomberg franchise-level employment data isn’t tracked. It estimates that its restaurant owners hire less than two per cent of employees through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. But how can it know that if it doesn’t track data?Meanwhile, entry level jobs for youth, students, and recent graduates, particularly in a weak economy, are too scarce.Statistics Canada’s New Labour Force Survey data released in August showed the lowest rates of employment for youth aged 15-19 and 2024 since the ‘pandemic.’From May to August 2024, the unemployment rate for students aged 15-24 was 16.7%, up from 12.0% in 2023. And the 17.6% summer unemployment rate was highest since 2012, excluding the summer of 2020.Overall, in August the unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points to 6.6%. Putting foreign workers on the payroll in favour of Canadians contributes to Canada’s unemployment rate that climbed to a seven-year high.Yes, it is sometimes hard to find good homegrown employees, but a preference for hiring lower-wage foreigners denies Canadians jobs.Sometimes the illegal hiring discrimination is blatant.White males — especially straight ones — along with youth are catching the brunt of blatantly unfair hiring practices.After increasing immigration levels to historic numbers, the Liberals were pressured to make changes to the Temporary Foreign Workers Program.Mandating businesses to hire local Canadian employees came into effect September 26.The restrictions will limit employers to hiring 10% low-wage foreigners and contracts will be “generally” limited to one year. Sounds a little fairer. But who is going to monitor that? Can we really trust a Liberal government that loosened hiring rules and created the problem to suddenly crack down?In January the Liberals made it easier for foreign students to scoop available jobs.Then in April the Liberals implemented limits on the number of hours foreign students were allowed to work.But August came along to show staggering youth unemployment numbers.Many argue the Temporary Foreign Worker Program that suppresses wage growth — and leaves foreign workers open to exploitation — should be scrapped in favour of high skilled, permanent immigrants.The Trudeau government vowed to crack down on businesses that continue to hire too many foreign workers. Well, OK.Now, things get fuzzy when it comes to plain old fair hiring practices.How can anyone know or prove applications of qualified people are thrown in the trash and someone’s cousin, or brother, neighbour somewhere was hired instead?One reader who posted a comment on X in response to the alleged Davis spam email summed it up well.“Please relay this message to the Canadian lady. I am an Indian by birth and nationality. Sorry love,” he wrote.”“These aholes you had to deal with do not represent my country. They are at best parasites.”No matter what skin color — white, black, brown — anyone who discriminates like that is indeed an ‘ahole.’Meanwhile, native-born Americans are feeling the sting of unemployment, while the job situation for foreign-born workers spiralled.According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, native-born Americans lost more than 1.3 million jobs over the last year, while foreign-born workers gained more than 1.2 million jobs. Given the number of people who are willing to work for less who re now swarming the southern border, perhaps Americans shouldn't be surprised. Should we?
