Alberta luxury hotel is ‘very disappointed’ with contract worker supplier

More than 30 foreign workers who worked at Chateau Lake Louise in Alberta have been told to leave the country after they were found not to have the necessary documentation to work in Canada.

The move comes after an investigation by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the RCMP into 32 contract officers who were hired by a third-party recruitment agency called One Team.

Of these employees, only one had proper employment records.

All of the affected employees worked in the hotel’s housekeeping, stewards, culinary and residence departments, Anastasia Martin-Stillwell, a spokeswoman for Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, said in an email.

She adds that all the foreign workers were unaware that their permits and visas were invalid.

“We are very disappointed with One Team’s operations and their negligence in their hiring practices,” Martin-Stillwell said.

“Decisions made by One Team have real, knock-on effects on their contract staff. We recognize that this is an incredibly challenging time for all involved.”

She says Chateau Lake Louise used the firm to address a “labor shortage” at the hotel and the facility also completed its “due diligence” on One Team before signing a contract with them.

When the CBSA and RCMP made their findings, Martin-Stillwell says the Fairmont immediately canceled its contract with the employment agency, ending all contracted shifts for workers at three of the chain’s hotels: Chateau Lake Louise, Banff Springs and Jasper Park Lodge.

“There were a total of 105 One Team contract staff across all three locations,” she said.

Although the workers have been told to leave the country, Fairmont is working to support the hired workers, including offering accommodation, food and transportation to Calgary or Edmonton if needed.

Any of the workers, who have proper permits and visas, will be able to look for work on their own at any of the Fairmont hotels.

Martin-Stillwell says the company continues to work with the CBSA and RCMP and will “conduct an internal audit” of all its hotels in Canada to ensure all foreign workers have the correct documentation.