Dozens of foreign workers at Chateau Lake Louise did not have proper permits, CBSA finds

More than 30 foreign workers who were working at Alberta's Chateau Lake Louise have been told to leave the country after it was determined they don't have the proper documentation to work in Canada.

The move comes following an investigation by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and RCMP into 32 contract workers that had been employed by a third-party recruiter called One Team.

Of those employees, only one had the proper employment documentation.

All of the affected employees worked in housekeeping, stewarding, culinary and residence divisions at the hotel, says Anastasia Martin-Stillwell, a spokesperson for Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, in an email.

She adds that all of the foreign workers had no idea their permits and visas were not valid.

"We are very disappointed in the operations of One Team and their negligence in their hiring practices," Martin-Stillwell said.

"The decisions made by One Team have real, consequential effects on their contract workers. We recognize this is an incredibly challenging time for all those involved."

She says the Chateau Lake Louise had used the firm to address "labour shortages" at the hotel and the facility also completed its "due diligence" of One Team before signing a contract with them.

When the CBSA and RCMP made their discoveries, Martin-Stillwell says Fairmont immediately cancelled its contract with the hiring agency, ending all contracted shifts for workers across three hotels in the chain: Chateau Lake Louise, Banff Springs and Jasper Park Lodge.

"There were a total of 105 One Team contract workers across all three locations," she said.

While the workers have been told to leave the country, Fairmont is working to support the contracted workers including offering accommodations, food and transportation to Calgary or Edmonton as needed.

Any of the workers who have proper permits and visas will have the opportunity to seek employment on their own in any of Fairmont's hotels.

Martin-Stillwell says the company is continuing to work with the CBSA and RCMP and will be "conducting an internal audit" on all of its hotels across Canada to ensure all foreign workers possess the proper documentation.