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Tim Hortons Pivots to Local Hiring, Promises Up to 10,000 New Canadian Jobs

Executives say rising youth unemployment prompted a pause to lobbying for expanded temporary foreign-worker access to prioritize local applicants.

Tim Hortons is considered part of the fabric of Canada, but long before the chain became synonymous with the country, it had humble beginnings as a coffee and doughnut shop. Freshly-brewed coffee sits on a hot plate in a Tim Hortons outlet in Oakville, Ont. on Sept.16, 2013.
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Tim Hortons in First Edmonton Place on May 21, 2026. The restaurant chain is committing to hire up to 10,000 local workers as it expands the number of locations this year.
Tim Hortons says it will hire 10,000 local people to work at its restaurants, like this one in Fort McMurray, Alta. The move is a pivot after the company spent years lobbying the government to expand the temporary foreign worker program that it relied on to pull in new employees.

Overview

  • On Monday, Tim Hortons announced it will seek to hire up to 10,000 local workers and dial back reliance on Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker program.
  • The company says about 4,000 employees currently work under the TFW program, roughly 3.6–4% of its Canadian restaurant roles, and that owner use of TFWs has fallen about 50% since 2024.
  • Restaurant Brands International told reporters it has stopped lobbying Ottawa to expand TFW caps and does not plan to press the issue while it pursues local hiring.
  • The hiring push follows 400 recruitment events held in March and April and ties into a multi-year capital plan to open 80 new stores and renovate 400 locations.
  • Observers note the pledge responds to a weak jobs market for young Canadians — Statistics Canada put youth unemployment near 14% in April — but experts say 10,000 hires will not alone fix the broader youth unemployment problem and TFWs will still be used in remote or hard-to-fill communities.