DH(electrician)wants to move to Canada-UPDATE!

YummyMummy2b · by **YummyMummy2b** » Tue Feb 28, 2022 9:54 pm

Hi Girls

First post in off topic! As my post says my husband wants to move to Canada to work-he is very excited by the recent job announcements in the Canadian construction industry. He is quite lucky to have constant work & although he is permanent he is always worried about work drying up & his employer is always talking about laying off newer employees if contracts become scarce....
We are very lucky that we do not have a mortgage or kids however I really wanted to start ttc & we were until the whole Canada scenario came up... Hubby thinks it would affect our application if I was expecting... I have been in my job for the past 9 years I am a counter manager for a cosmetics company in Brown Thomas, I love my job & have an excellent salary & benefits so it is alot to give up...
I am also extremely close to my parents & I spent the night bawling crying last night at the thoughts of leaving them. On the other hand I am so excited at the thoughts of a new adventure & I love to travel.Canada seems more familiar & less scary than Australia or NZ..
Is any other wollie contemplating Canada at the moment?

Luka · by **Luka** » Tue Feb 28, 2022 10:11 pm

JUst wanted to reply..... I was thinking if you were both out of work, it would be a great opportunity to go there, but as you both have fairly secure jobs, I would be slow in going at the moment. Just my opinion. IS there a specific length of time you would have to stay in canada? I heard about the delegation coming to dublin but didn't pick up the details.....I suppose you have to go with your gut feeling....

YummyMummy2b · by **YummyMummy2b** » Tue Feb 28, 2022 10:19 pm

Thanks for the reply Luka-we are going to the working abroad expo on Sunday in the RDS. I just have mixed feelings about the move...I can see from hubbys poing of view his job is not solid, he is doing alot of unpaid overtime & as he is one of the newer employees he is the first to go as his boss often reminds him... We started ttc last month 7 I was so excited about starting a family as we are both 30 we always said we would start now.
Also the thoughts of moving sends me into a blind panic but I always loved to travel & have a good sense of adventure so maybe is wouldn't be so bad? I have never been to Canada & I know nothing about Canadian life retail management oppurtunities/salaries etc.... I dont know what to think!!!!!!!

Luka · by **Luka** » Tue Feb 28, 2022 10:48 pm

It's a good idea to go to the expo. From what I heard on the news, the majority of jobs are in British Columbia & Alberta, which are on the west coast. I think they are long the same latitude as Ireland, so the weather would be similar, but better. I completely understand how you feel about the whole TTC situation. BUt I'm 37 & only had my first baby last year, so you have time. If you look up Canadian nationality law, it will tell you the citizenship rights of children born there to non-canadian parents. it may just be handy to know these things in advance. DO let us know how you get on at the expo....& make sure your passports are in date ;o)

LittleLily · by **LittleLily** » Tue Feb 28, 2022 11:02 pm

I can write a better post later but just wanted to ask about the company you work for at the minute.... Would they transfer you to a position in Canada? Theres stores like The Bay (similar to Debenhams) and Holt Renfrew (like BTs, have a store in Vancouver and one in Edmonton) so all the same brands as Ireland.

YummyMummy2b · by **YummyMummy2b** » Tue Feb 28, 2022 11:43 pm

Thanks for the replies-yes the company I'm with is actually American(will pm you name!)with a large base in Canada & worldwide but I think from what hubby is telling me that the jobs he is interested(& pay the big bucks!) in are indeed on the West Coast & the towns are pretty remote but surely will have some dept stores? I am able to find out about international job ops through the HR dept & express my interest in any future vacancies.
In a way I am so excited at the prospects & it sounds like dh would have amazing earning potential but I feel I have become so settled & like my little routine-as I said I was so excited about starting a familu. Luka you are right we have plenty of time but if I were lucky enough to fall pregnant it would be extremely stressful to try & organise a move, then to have the baby over there I guess I would feel extremely isolated & upset at not having the support of my parents... ps congrats on your baby hope your enjoying every second of being a mammy!!
Its even the thoughts of going for an interview, applying for visa, pps, sorting out bank a/c tax etc is so scary!!

starzzzz · by **starzzzz** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 2:48 am

hi,

Im living in Alberta at the minute, Edmonton and we love it. Been here about 18months and are settled in well. There are alot of electrician jobs going around here which would suit you as we have west edmonton mall which is the 5th largest in the world so you would have no problem getting a retail management job.

on the ttc front Im currently 37 weeks pregnant with our first and I couldnt fault the system at all, have had 4 scans, see the same consultant everytime, the hospital wards are all only 2 bed wards at most so nothing to share. The full health care in alberta is free as long as you are staying more than 6months on a work permit, you just pay for a prescription. For maternity leave you get one year at 55% of your salary as long as you work 16 weeks before you go off. The baby is automatically a canadian citizen aswell.

Most of the smaller towns would have a sears dept store. Tell your hubby to look at the red seal requirements as thats what he needs to move over here and his qualifications be recognised just so he could have looked into it before you are speaking to people at the rds. Might help him.

On the family thing there are some companies that the flights are reasonable my mums coming over with her partner in may and its only costing them 656 return for the 2 of them, and they love it here they didnt want to go home last time they visited us,

boodlesdoodles · by **boodlesdoodles** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 9:16 am

They were talking about this on The Last Word with Matt Cooper on Monday i think, im sure the podcast is on the website of you want to listen back to it. But from what i could gather the jobs are indeed in very remote areas of Canada, and seem to be almost like mining jobs or the like?! Workers will be required to live on site in work camps for maybe 5 weeks at a time, then they get maybe 3 wks off, so if you are living in the closest town bear in mind you could be on your own for a good percentage of that time. And thats hard without family, in a new place. The areas they were talking about appear to get very harsh weather also, and we're talking Canadian winters, not Irish winters! I have a friend from Canada, and winters are very very tough there, even in the large cities, so i can only imagine what its like up the mountains!

I would definitely do a lot of research before you commit to anything.

Luka · by **Luka** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 10:36 am

starzzzz wrote:hi,

Im living in Alberta at the minute, Edmonton and we love it. Been here about 18months and are settled in well. There are alot of electrician jobs going around here which would suit you as we have west edmonton mall which is the 5th largest in the world so you would have no problem getting a retail management job.

on the ttc front Im currently 37 weeks pregnant with our first and I couldnt fault the system at all, have had 4 scans, see the same consultant everytime, the hospital wards are all only 2 bed wards at most so nothing to share. The full health care in alberta is free as long as you are staying more than 6months on a work permit, you just pay for a prescription. For maternity leave you get one year at 55% of your salary as long as you work 16 weeks before you go off. The baby is automatically a canadian citizen aswell.

Most of the smaller towns would have a sears dept store. Tell your hubby to look at the red seal requirements as thats what he needs to move over here and his qualifications be recognised just so he could have looked into it before you are speaking to people at the rds. Might help him.

On the family thing there are some companies that the flights are reasonable my mums coming over with her partner in may and its only costing them 656 return for the 2 of them, and they love it here they didnt want to go home last time they visited us,

Starzzz, you're making ME want to go now!!!! ;o)

IvytheTerrible · by **IvytheTerrible** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 10:49 am

I would echo what Boodles said, you would need to do your research so maybe compromise with your DH and say you are willing to look into it at least. I would be interested to know about the visa situation. Does it only last a year or two as I'm not sure it would be worth giving up two jobs here for that. What would happen after the visa is up, can you apply for permanency and what is the likelihood of getting it etc.

Best of luck with whatever you decide :wv

starzzzz · by **starzzzz** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 6:12 pm

A lot of the jobs are in workcamps which are very hard and have lots of issues but there are jobs that are just in the normal towns and cities. as for the visa it will depend on what route you are going down you can pm me for info.

On giving up jobs at home, in my own situation me and hubs both gave up permanent safe jobs at home to move here, soo many people called us stupid for going, after 6 months the same people were saying how we were so smart to have went and acting like it was their idea. We are not permanent resident yet in the process of it but even if I had to go home tomorrow I wouldn't regret it. But like I said may just be me you need to think what you want.

The winter depends where you are the coldest day I've been out in is -49. its -26 today and I'm going for a walk now. its actually not that bad once your used to it. thats with just jeans and a coat on but i do know another irish couple and she wont leave the house without her full ski gear cause she never seems to have acclimatized and finds it awful so it can depend.

Any questions pm me.

HippyChic · by **HippyChic** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 6:30 pm

I have a lot of Irish relatives in Canada, they left during the 80's and early 90's and they've never come home (well, for hols but you know what I mean...). They've had hols here, we've gone out there, I'd move there tomorrow if I could but H2B's work is here so here we stay. I actually moved there for a few months when I was 18/19 and worked as a nanny in Toronto, it was an AMAZING experience and while I love my H2B to bits there is a part of me that wishes I'd never come back to Ireland - but at least myself and H2B ended up together so silver lining and all that! I'd go for it if I were you, if things turn around here you can always come back but I reckon if you have half the experience that I did you'll never come home!

Also, I was there during the winter and it wasn't that bad cold-wise, it's a dry cold (unlike here where you have rain and dampness) so once you're well wrapped up you're grand. Amazing to see how they dealt with the several feet of snow there compared to here where everything shuts down after a sprinkling! :o0

YummyMummy2b · by **YummyMummy2b** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 7:01 pm

Ah Starzz thats so much for all the advice-its fantastic to hear from someone who has made the transition & it sounds like you are thriving!
The whole thing is so overwhelming for me but dh was told today that work is drying up & his next contract will be only 3 months & will be renewed then every 3 months... he is disappointed but he really has his heart set in Canada & really wants to make a go of things over there. For me I am a creature of habit I hate change & newness & I would be completely happy to stay as we are(with a baby!!!!)
Starzz congrats on your pregnancy you must be so excited-wow 2 per room not exactly the Rotunda so lol! Thats great that baby will also become a citizen-dual citizanshop is such an amazing gift to give a child. Alot of my cousins were born in the U.S, I was always so jealous when they went back each summer to work!
I know both of us need to be completely motivated & determined to make this work & I need to be 100% positive that all will work out and at the moment I can only see the negatives... What is Alberta like Starzz-its meant to be a gorgeous region. Do you get to go skiing much(probably not in your condition at the moment!!) Had you any problems making new friends & would you & dh have an active social life?
Boodles & Ivy as far as I know re the Visa dh may get fast-tracked as he has a trade they are specifically recruiting for & meets all the requirements on this end-as Starzz said there is a red pass he would need to do in Canada. I think we would survive ok in the winter its just something we would have to become accustomed to-nothing timberlands & northface can't handle(I hope!!)
Starzz they are crazy temps-when it drops to -3 here I am perished!! Fair play to you going for your walk! I'm glad you were able to show those who thought you were crazy-it does take alot of guts & hours of soul-searching to come to a decision.I have made up pro & con lists as the pros totally outweigh the cons which are my parents & my job.. We are not expecting to make our fortune or anything like that as it appears wages are like for like to here but maybe we will have a better quality of life? What would you feel are the main differences between your life now & before you moved?
HippyChic that sounds fab-just out of interest would your relatives have a very good quality of life now? I have family who move to the states in the 70s & are all loaded now lol!!! Thats true re coming home but we reckon it will be a long time before things pick up here-I keep saying to hubby that with the ammount emigrating at the moment surely more vacancies will open up here?? Ooooh everyone on here is selling it to me-at least Canada isn't too far away I would not be able for Australia/NZ....

HippyChic · by **HippyChic** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 7:26 pm

YummyMummy2b wrote:HippyChic that sounds fab-just out of interest would your relatives have a very good quality of life now?

Yes, much better than if they had stayed here. One uncle married a Canadian woman and my god they live like royalty! Three aunties married here and then moved and raised their kids out there, they wouldn't be quite as wealthy as their brother (but he is in the banking sector) but they all have lovely, large homes, 2 in the city and one near Niagara Falls. A further aunt never married and lives in the city in her own house too, gorgeous open-plan design with a floating central walkway between the upstairs rooms.

They have all become citizens, some of the kids were born there, others born here before they moved, all the kids are doing well for themselves too, two have married and had kids of their own and the other younger ones are all going to college. One of the aunties set up her own business, sold it, opened a new business and now employs several people so it's going well for her. They all tend to plan trips back to Ireland once every two years or so and because they book in advance, and normally travel together so they get group discounts, it works out very reasonable for them. Even when someone from here travels out to them they book everything for us on their side as it often works out 15-20% cheaper.

Their healthcare system is FAR superior to our own. Their economy, whilst taking a small hit like the rest of the world, tends to be mostly interior and so is self-supporting. Roads are great, schools are very good also and there is a multi-culturalism that allows for "outsiders" to be accepted much more readily than they would be here, especially in the cities. The country itself is beautiful and so diverse. Lake Ontario is gorgeous for camping trips in the summer (ah, the holidays of my teens), and my brother recently travelled all over Canada as part of a round-the-world trip he and his g/f are doing and OMG the photos I have seen on his FB are just incredible!

starzzzz · by **starzzzz** » Wed Feb 29, 2022 7:54 pm

YummyMummy2b wrote: What is Alberta like Starzz-its meant to be a gorgeous region. Do you get to go skiing much(probably not in your condition at the moment!!) Had you any problems making new friends & would you & dh have an active social life?

We like where we are alot of people find Edmonton very boring and industrial but it has amazing parklands and a gorgeous river valley which we spent most of last summer in. If you go away for the weekend you tend to go to Banff or Lake Louise which are both breaktaking and ive been 4/5 times each time you have the same reaction. Ill never get sick of it. There is alot of skiing we haven't been much due to the baby but otherwise we would. There are 2 ski clubs in the city plus the ones a few hours away.

We've not had to much trouble making friends. you do have to follow up on people sometimes more than at home, as they think invites are implied when you can be kinda going am i invited? In some ways it is like tv, our companies both actually do retreats and family bbqs etc it takes some getting used to. But I would say I have more friends here in the time we've been here than in the 4 years I lived in Dublin. You can have a very active social life but it doesn't revolve around the pub as much as at home. would be more coffee, dinner hockey games and visiting people. (still alcohol always available though, they like their drink as much as we do)

YummyMummy2b wrote: We are not expecting to make our fortune or anything like that as it appears wages are like for like to here but maybe we will have a better quality of life? What would you feel are the main differences between your life now & before you moved?

Our wages are very like for like as we are both in the exact same roles as before we left. But we have more disposable income here. We rent a townhouse for less than we rented a 1bed for in Dublin, Some groceries are more expensive but some things are cheaper so it does even out. I'd say we have a better quality of life for sure the main working day here is 8-4 so even that hour in the evening makes a big different to what you can do in the evening. That would probably be our biggest difference that you actually will go out in the evenings after work and do alot more, and not just stay in and watch tv.

we know alot of irish who have been here a few years now and they are very well off. Companies here really seem to reward hard work. Hubby has had 4 pay rises in 18 months and ive had 2 so the difference from home is amazing. It does cost us more to go home than people to visit us but when they come here they get a proper holiday but if you go home we find people forget that it is actually your years holiday and expect you to run around.

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