A few weeks ago, the news of American fast food giant Burger King acquiring Canada’s very own Tim Hortons spurred discussion within our Comm 101 class. Despite weighing both benefits and drawbacks of the acquisition, the class never came across the possibility of Canadian layoffs due to cost cutting. Disappointingly, a recent study from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says that this could very much be the case. The study has reasoned that 3G Capital, the private equity firm acquiring Tim Hortons has not assured any benefits to Canadians. Furthermore, the record of 3G capital suggests that the firm’s debt financing could result in the layoff of more than 44% of it’s corporate staff. Personally, i do not see the acquisition of Tim Horton as a benefit to Canadians. Although the acquisition could result in access to more capital or resources for Tim Hortons, 3G capital could very well change the quality of its coffee beans in order to reduce expenses, possibly impacting the company’s value proposition. According to the report from the Centre for Policy Alternatives, other possible methods of reducing expenses could include shuffling finances to reduce taxes in Canada. Over the first five years of the acquisition, this could cost the Canadian government up to $667 million dollars and when combined with the layoffs, it is clear that the deal is not set with the best interests of Canadians in mind.