will i get job right away in canada?

[BCguy]

Could someone suggest the various options we have in terms of some white collar jobs we could land easily on arrival to Canada? Your response much appreciated!

P.S. Someone suggested call center jobs. Can you add on to the list?

Has somebody informed you that some Blue Collar Jobs pay more then White Collar in Canada,For example Bus Drivers can earn 89-90$ Thousand a year compared to Nurses around 50-55$Thousand,A Electrical Power Lineman earns 100$ thousand up to 120$ Thousand a year compared to a Bank Branch manager 60-70$ Thousand about the same as a Vancouver Police new recruit at 65 $ Thousand

 

[Leon]

Many of the blue collar jobs require some training or even apprenticeship but yeah, you can still get pretty good money just working as a helper or in a warehouse. For example, a guy I know started working for a contractor drywalling, no experience and he was right away making $16 and hour and in a couple of months got a raise to 18. Working in a warehouse can get you 17-18 full time and it's not necessarily heavy lifting or anything, people I've talked to say they have lifts for most of the stuff. One of my coworkers got a job as an apprentice sprinkler fitter starting at $22 and said he'd be making $45 in 4 years when he'd be done his apprenticeship. In comparison, I know a girl who got a job as a hotel receptionist, nice white collar job, and she was only making $12 and as you can see at http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/res_eng.aspx?ProvId=99&Keyword=call+centre+agent&Student=No most call centre jobs have you starting at $10.

 

[foreverwaiting]

Very interesting I must say :-o)

Problem is that I come from that part of the world where blue collar jobs are looked down upon, and it is going to be a herculean task for me to change my mindset in a short period of time!

 

[Leon]

Very interesting I must say :-o)

Problem is that I come from that part of the world where blue collar jobs are looked down upon, and it is going to be a herculean task for me to change my mindset in a short period of time!

Well, that is up to you I also come from a country where blue collar jobs are somewhat looked down upon but I come from a blue collar family. I have a degree but I chose to do blue collar work anyway.

If you are happier working in a clean call centre for $10 than working in a dirty warehouse for $18, that is obviously a question you have to answer for yourself.

 

[foreverwaiting]

Would you know what kind of job duties are required for jobs in a warehouse? Are these jobs physically demanding? In what part of Canada are these jobs available in plenty?

Very interesting I must say :-o)

Problem is that I come from that part of the world where blue collar jobs are looked down upon, and it is going to be a herculean task for me to change my mindset in a short period of time!

Well, that is up to you I also come from a country where blue collar jobs are somewhat looked down upon but I come from a blue collar family. I have a degree but I chose to do blue collar work anyway.

If you are happier working in a clean call centre for $10 than working in a dirty warehouse for $18, that is obviously a question you have to answer for yourself.

 

[Leon]

I know some people doing this in Edmonton, AB. They are moving pallets with electronic pallet jacks, moving them into trucks etc. I asked a couple of them if it was a hard job and they said no, you don't have to lift anything yourself. The only thing you might have to get used to is being on your feet most of the day instead of sitting down.

 

[RPM]

It is amazing how things are different from one country to another! Just to give you my background, I hold my Master's degree from London School of Economics and I am working with a Bank as a trader and get paid $50 an hour. I thought for a someone who does not have a North American work experience its fairly a good pay.

The other day our fire place (runs on gas) was not working for some strange reasons. We called an agent to get it repaired and he charged us $200 an hour! I was shocked. In India the chagres/pay would have been other way round.

 

[Leon]

I'd be surprised if the furnace repair guy was getting more than $50 out of the 200. Next time ask him. $200 is the standard call out fee if they have to come out after hours or on a weekend. I think it's only 100 if it's during normal working hours. Still, furnace guy needs to make a living too and when the furnace is broken and it's -20 outside, the furnace guy is a lot more important than anybody else

 

[eduardoF]

There are some (partial) explanations for that. In the US, you probably need to have some sort of certificate and government permit to work as a furnace maintenance work. That prevents competition and as a consequence drives fees high. I bet in India can claim to be able to fix a furnace, and offer his services around.
But of course, trading is also a regulated profession, you have to pass a test before you can do it (from what I read), but competition for a job is a lot higher, everyone who's got a master's degree in economics, finance, business adm, computer science, applies for those jobs, so if you quit, someone's there to take your seat.
In any case, traders usually (again, from what I hear) get bonuses at the end of the year, so it ends up being more than $50 an hour

Anyway, back to the topic, possibly one way to look for jobs is to contact the Canada-Yourcountry Chamber of Commerce & Industry, those organizations keep a list of companies that operate in both countries, and they promote meetings and stuff, you could sneak in and drop a few business cards.

 

[BCguy]

That is a common cultural issue,Many New Immigrants complain that they have to take Demeaning Menial jobs,They cannot accept that in Canada Blue collar jobs are not considered demeaning,I know a Brazilian Woman Who is getting apprenticed as a Plumber to the horror of her Middle Class Family in Brazil,She is a Dental Technichian and her Family would rather She work as a 18$ a hour Dental Office Receptionist rather then 40$-45$ a hour as a plumber.They have even offered to pay for her apartment rental about 600$ a month rather then suffer the "shame"of having a daughter of dentists work as a plumber.Same with a Bangladeshi I know,He would rather work inj a call center at 11$ a hour rather then work as a warehouse worker at 16$,He said that the extra 5$ or 800$ a month is not worth the shame.Go figure,Can you eat Pride???Wear Pride????Spend Pride????So I guess its a major cultural issue,Well thankfully most Immigrants are not proud like most Canadians

 

[eduardoF]

BCGuy,

As a Brazilian myself, I must say I understand the situation. It is, as you point out, a cultural issue. If you know many Brazilians there, you'll probably notice that they tend to keep a distance from other Brazilians. There's no Brazitown anywhere to speak of, there are few Brazilian associations, few Brazilian schools abroad, etc. (I am speaking in general terms, and I know there are exceptions)

Some commentators have argued that the two facts are linked: Brazilians avoid their country fellows because they're ashamed of what they do. Of course, this does not apply to those who achieve more "successful" lives, they do not have anything to be ashamed for, but on the other hand, they do not need the support of a community.

Brazilian teenagers are one of the largest demographics of ESL schools in Canada (and I was one of them!), but you find almost no Brazilian au-pairs. Why? What middle-class Brazilian family would put their children to shame by making them work as babysitters abroad?

I find the whole issue fascinating, that's why a while back I asked you if you were aware of any studies in the habits of migrants living in Canada. It would be interesting to compare how they behave, and you could probably extract some important lessons for policy-making as well.

(again, I know this is a stereotype, and that there are lots of Brazilians who behave differently)

 

[Leon]

I grew up in a blue collar family but my parents encouraged us to go to University. When I was at University, I met some young people who were raised to pity blue collar workers, thinking they were stupid. A couple of them even said that they had been tempted to apprentice in a trade when they were dumb teenagers but in one case the guy said his family had saved him from this stupid dream and in the other the girl said she ultimately could not think of bringing such sadness to her highly educated parents.

But when it comes down to it, when Mr. University guys pipes are leaking and he has to pay the plumber a hefty sum to come and fix it, who is the stupid one? Most tradesmen have better job security than most university people and in many cases make more money too. When recession hits, you will still need to call a plumber if your pipes are leaking.

When people immigrate, they need to adapt to their new country. Looking down on blue collar workers is not cool here in Canada. We need everybody to make society work and no job should be beneath you.

 

[BCguy]

Totally agree,the sooner New Canadians realize this the faster they will adopt to life in Canada,On a side note The family of the Brazilian Dental Technichian agreed for her to continue her study after She sent pictures of the 750,000$ home and BMW and SUV of the Master Plumber she is training under to her parents,Her mentor told her parents that He can gurantee their Daughter will have a brighter future as a plumber

 

[jalams2000]

Now-a-days I feel horror when I think about Canada. I think it's really a hard job to be sucessful as a newcomer to Canada.

I received AOR in July, 2005. During the long period I could not appear to know about Canada in details. After joining the Forum I have been learning many things everyday. Now the project seems to be a hard nut to crack to me. I do not know whether I could be able to reach my destination.

I shall appreciate any comments on this matter.

Thanks.

 

[BCguy]

Are you horrified blue collar workers earn the same or even higher then white collar workers???Well Welcome to the North American meritocracy,Just like this Bangladeshi I know,He cannot accept his white collar call center job pays only 11$ an hour while a Bus Driver earns triple he does,But it is demeaning to drive a bus right???A Filipino Bus driver i know who was a engineer back in the Philippines earns 85$ Thousand a year and owns a big home,a lexus ,audi and a SUV as well as a boat and a vacation home in Las Vegas,Prey tell me how demeaned he feels??He is laughing at some of his peers working in offices for almost half his salary Dont be afraid to try something different