Tim Hortons employee fired, rehired over Timbit

Employee fired for giving free Timbit to baby then hired by another location the same day

An Ontario woman has been on an employment roller coaster — over a piece of dough valued at 16 cents.

Nicole Lilliman, 27, worked at a Tim Hortons store in London, Ont., for three years. On May 5, Lilliman served a regular customer with an 11-month-old baby. The customer told her she’d been having a bad day and Lilliman gave the baby a Timbit to quiet her down. She didn’t think anything of it, since Timbits were often given out to dogs and children.

However, on May 7, her managers told her she had been caught on video giving out free food, which was against store policy. Only day-old Timbits were supposed to be given out for free to pets. Expecting a warning, Lilliman, a single mother of four, was surprised when she was fired for stealing.

Once word got out about the firing, the franchise owner offered Lilliman her job back. She accepted and is back at work, but at another store owned by the franchisee. She felt it would be awkward to return to the same store.

Tim Hortons told the Canadian Press it was discussing the policy with the store manager who fired Lilliman, calling the firing “an overreaction and not appropriate.”

However, the experience has made Lilliman feel disenchanted with the company and she said she plans on looking for work elsewhere.

Latest stories