The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday, Jan. 20, edition that the news that some Tim Hortons franchisees were cutting benefits and paid breaks for employees to cut costs after Ontario hiked the minimum wage by 21 per cent has caused Wendy Cotie to lose her taste for the brand. The Globe's Susan Krashinsky writes that Ms. Cotie's boycott abides despite the fact that she is not sure whether the franchise owners of her local Tims in Arnprior, Ont., had made cuts. She objects to the fact that the chain's parent, Restaurant Brands International, has said so little on the issue. RBI is controlled by 3G Capital. While she is just one person, Ms. Cotie's boycott is a case study in the danger to the Tim Hortons brand. On Friday, about 50 protests were planned across Canada in response to the cuts. The brand, meanwhile, has become a political punching bag for an unpopular Ontario premier: Kathleen Wynne has accused some franchise owners of treating employees as "pawns." The question is whether all the negative publicity could inflict lasting damage to the brand. Environics Communications head Bruce MacLellan says, "An organization can't sustain that kind of continued pressure on their reputation."