Franchise Businesses: An Impediment to Decent Work in Canada?

Every year, $96 billion is generated from the Canadian franchise industry, with approximately 1 out of every 10 working Canadians being directly or indirectly employed by franchise businesses. Within a franchise business model, franchisors are able to earn increased profits through the breakdown of employment relationships and creating increasingly precarious work conditions for franchisee employees. The research conducted in this paper relates to Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This concept is important as widespread decent work deficits can lead to economic inefficiency, undermine social cohesion within countries, and produce significant adverse health effects through material and social deprivation. Through a three-step research design consisting of a literature review, scoping analysis, and case study analysis, this paper seeks to gain an in-depth understanding of the current franchise landscape in Canada and the ways in which franchisors violate and suppress decent work rights of employees working in Canadian franchise businesses.