Finding a job in Canada with limited work experience.

Gift of the Gabbert

I'm thinking of applying for the IEC visa but am worried about getting a job as I have **** all on my C.V. I dropped out of uni this past summer and only have limited work experience,I worked in a supermarket for 18 months and have done some labouring on building sites for a couple of summers.If I go over,how hard will I find it to get a job and where would be the best place to move to?

the_syco

Do you have any qualifications at all?

WasterEx

You'll get a job if you really commit to finding one and you're constantly on the look out. (It becomes inevitable that way)
I'm moving to Toronto, I'm not sure what the story with employment is over there but I'm confident I'll get work even with my lack of qualifications

Tonto86

Come to Alberta. If your breathing you'll have workin a couple days

Martyn1989

Yep as anyone whos looked for a job in Calgary will tell you, if you can't find a job here theres something seriously wrong. You take the first job you get then start looking for a better one or maybe even just another one.

Minimum wage is not alot though and although you will survive you won't have much to enjoy yourself with, so look at getting some qualifications or atleast concentrate getting a little experience in bars and restaurants so you can earn some tips.

againstthetide

Gift of the Gabbert wrote: »

I'm thinking of applying for the IEC visa but am worried about getting a job as I have **** all on my C.V. I dropped out of uni this past summer and only have limited work experience,I worked in a supermarket for 18 months and have done some labouring on building sites for a couple of summers.If I go over,how hard will I find it to get a job and where would be the best place to move to?

If you plan on staying in Canada long term then it will be really difficult to stay there beyond an IEC without a trade or a skill.
It will be very hard to get PR status as there is a lot of criteria and they put a lot on emphasis on training and education.
If your intention is to get the IEC and just come for two years and make msome cash I would say tear on but if you are looking for a long term plan then I would advise get a qualification of some sort

tony81

WasterEx wrote: »

You'll get a job if you really commit to finding one and you're constantly on the look out. (It becomes inevitable that way)
I'm moving to Toronto, I'm not sure what the story with employment is over there but I'm confident I'll get work even with my lack of qualifications

Really bad idea. Toronto is a horrible city for a start. Full of pretentious nobodies. There are so many immigrants crowding out the lower end of the job market that you'll end up sharing a room in chinatown and living on noodles if you don't have a professional qualification.

I think Alberta is probably your best bet.

JustRoss23

It depends though if he get a job on the oil rigs he would almost 100% get PR Status as the oil rig/sands will be going for many years to come. or even if he got a job with a big company out of Edmonton say as a welders assistant he could end up getting PR that way by signing a contract and doing an apprenticeship.

Tonto86

againstthetide wrote: »

If you plan on staying in Canada long term then it will be really difficult to stay there beyond an IEC without a trade or a skill.
It will be very hard to get PR status as there is a lot of criteria and they put a lot on emphasis on training and education.
If your intention is to get the IEC and just come for two years and make msome cash I would say tear on but if you are looking for a long term plan then I would advise get a qualification of some sort

Why do people answer if they ain't got a clue what they're talking about.

There are several routes to permancy, a qualification does help but isn't a requirement.

frankspencer

My mate is in Red Dear Alberta, told me they will take anyone on for oil rig work but he works 12 hour day for three weeks straight so it is tough work!.

JustRoss23

Tonto86 did you go out with a trade? or are you labouring ?:)

againstthetide

Tonto86 wrote: »

Why do people answer if they ain't got a clue what they're talking about.

There are several routes to permancy, a qualification does help but isn't a requirement.

Yes there are many route to PR, I should know I have looked at them all

Was on the point of applying for the CEC when it closed but have gone down the SINP route instead

I had considered going into construction when I got here for the extra cash but went a different way because it was a better fit with staying long term in Canada


AINP does a semi skilled program

Criteria is below:

http://www.albertacanada.com/immigration/immigrating/ainp-eds-semi-skilled-criteria.aspx#newcandidatecriteria

Other PNP streams are geared towards the skilled worker end of things

I am just making the point that if you want to stay long term in Canada long term it gets easier with skills and qualifications

If you want work come to Saskatchewan, not much in the way of work shortages here

http://saskatchewan.kijiji.ca/f-jobs-general-labour-W0QQCatIdZ149

http://saskatchewan.kijiji.ca/f-jobs-bar-food-hospitality-W0QQCatIdZ60

From job bank trades and construction search for the past 7 days

http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/res-eng.aspx?TmFrm=E7Days&ProvId=08&Categ=7*&OpPage=50&Stdnt=No&nsrc=1


Past 7 days in Farming fishing and natural resources

http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/res-eng.aspx?TmFrm=E7Days&ProvId=08&Categ=8*&OpPage=50&Stdnt=No&nsrc=1


In any case if you do want to stay longer start reading here

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/index.asp you can figure out what way you want to go.

WasterEx

Right, gonna look into Alberta, sounds like there's a constant flow of jobs there. People seem more confident about it in general.

WasterEx

JustRoss23 wrote: »

Mate loads of work in Alberta it seems a lot of construction jobs paying 15-20 bucks an hour good money if your a single lad not supporting anyone. if you really want to make money you could get a job on an oil rig as a roughneck.. this work will either make or break you. really all you need is your hs2 alive ticket be able to work 12 hour days and pass a drug test. it was voted the 4th worst job of 2012 but the pay is pretty unreal. 6K every 2 weeks:).

Wow, where can I find more information about the oil rig jobs? Are you sure it's 6k every 2 weeks? If it is I'm gonna try and sort myself out with that job.
What's a 'hs2' ticket?

againstthetide

Roughneck aka swamper

http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/res-eng.aspx?ProvId=09&kwd=swamper&OpPage=50&Stdnt=No&nsrc=1

or also known as a Derrickhand
http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/res-eng.aspx?ProvId=09&kwd=derrickhand&OpPage=50&Stdnt=No&nsrc=1

againstthetide

http://www.safetyed.ca/info/h2s Hydrogen suphide gas training

Also likely to need First aid training , fall arrest training etc but job descriptions should tell you

ShooterSF

tony81 wrote: »

Really bad idea. Toronto is a horrible city for a start. Full of pretentious nobodies. There are so many immigrants crowding out the lower end of the job market that you'll end up sharing a room in chinatown and living on noodles if you don't have a professional qualification.

I think Alberta is probably your best bet.

Any ideas on barwork in Toronto? It's what I'm looking to do and I figured a big city is more likely to have more bar jobs.

frankspencer

From the last post it seems to be better to work in a camp as they provide everything but that is for the oil sands not the rigs i think..
this video gives a good insight.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuBEnh3E0cg

againstthetide

Didnt realise there was a difference between roughneck and derrick hand ah well live and learn.
Sounds like you earn your money, yis are welcome to it

Martyn1989

ShooterSF wrote: »

Any ideas on barwork in Toronto? It's what I'm looking to do and I figured a big city is more likely to have more bar jobs.

Right theres about 3000 miles between Calgary and Toronto but I'll offer what I know. I'm bartending in Calgary. Food and beverage service/management is an industry that they are looking for people. Think about it, in Calgary there are alot of high earners, alot of work and a low cost of living, this gives people high disposable income for luxuries like food and drink. Calgary is an extremely wealthy city teaming with professionals etc.

If you've got confidence and a good personality you'll do well here. If you've experience working in a bar you'll get a job bartending. If you've none you'll get a job barbacking. You could move up from barbacking within a few weeks, you may never move up in the place your working and have to move around to get your chance.

Wages and tips depends where your working, bartenders minimum wage is lower then the regular min wage, its $9.20 an hour, theres tons of myths on the internet about the money that can be made here, I have walked out of a quiet Monday day shift with nothing, a Saturday night shift with $200 etc. In general I'm guarentee'd to at least double my wages. If your a hard working barback the bartenders will always try look after you, but it'll be considerably less then they're share.

To work in Alberta you'll need to get ProServe responsible service of alcohol training cert. It costs $20, you'll need to be in Canada to do it, you do it online in a couple of hours and its done. You can get the ProTect security staff training free then aswell which do because it covers relevent law etc. even if you've no intention of working doors.

You'll earn enough here to live and enjoy your stay, theres certainly more money to be made here then at home aswell as alot of opportunity to learn and improve yourself if you plan on spending a bit of time in the industry. With regards to being able to stay on in Canada with 'just barwork' it is possible. I work with a barback who is being sponsored for his LMO because he's an extremely hard worker and good for the business, how common this is I don't know and I don't know much about the LMO process.

Tonto86

[,nt a different way because it was a better fit with staying long term in Canada


AINP does a semi skilled program

Criteria is below:

http://www.albertacanada.com/immigration/immigrating/ainp-eds-semi-skilled-criteria.aspx#newcandidatecriteria

Other PNP streams are geared towards the skilled worker end of things

I am just making the point that if you want to stay long term in Canada long term it gets easier with skills and qualifications

If you want work come to Saskatchewan, not much in the way of work shortages here

http://saskatchewan.kijiji.ca/f-jobs-general-labour-W0QQCatIdZ149

http://saskatchewan.kijiji.ca/f-jobs-bar-food-hospitality-W0QQCatIdZ60

From job bank trades and construction search for the past 7 days

http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/res-eng.aspx?TmFrm=E7Days&ProvId=08&Categ=7*&OpPage=50&Stdnt=No&nsrc=1


Past 7 days in Farming fishing and natural resources

http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/res-eng.aspx?TmFrm=E7Days&ProvId=08&Categ=8*&OpPage=50&Stdnt=No&nsrc=1


In any case if you do want to stay longer start reading here

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/index.asp you can figure out what way you want to go.[/Quote]


Your right, there's loads programs. In Alberta you can even get sponsored in bar work, waiting, hotel cleaner or front desk clerk, all unskilled jobs.

Its a pet peeve of mine when people give damning carpeted and wrong advice. People make life decisions on this, I'd hate to think of someone sitting at home thinkin of what could of been for no reason.

againstthetide

Tonto86 wrote: »

Its a pet peeve of mine when people give damning carpeted and wrong advice. People make life decisions on this, I'd hate to think of someone sitting at home thinkin of what could of been for no reason.

And it's a pet peeve of mine when people paint a super rosy picture and advise people to rush in
I'm just trying to provide balance that why I provided the link to CIC so people know what their options are.
And I did provide links to general labour jobs that should be easy to get and pay reasonably well but point
People need to do research themselves beyond forums and do the job searches and phone the CIC if needs be
It's a seriously bad move to base these decisions off one source of information like boards

JustRoss23

Yea i can see both yer points of view. it would be an awful bad thing to move 6000 miles and after two or three months have to ring mammy or daddy ask them to pay for a ticket home.
But saying that Alberta/Saskatchewan seems have a lot of construction jobs/Bar Jobs so i am sure with a good work attitude a person could do awful well for him/herself .:)

Martyn1989

JustRoss23 wrote: »

Yea i can see both yer points of view. it would be an awful bad thing to move 6000 miles and after two or three months have to ring mammy or daddy ask them to pay for a ticket home.
But saying that Alberta/Saskatchewan seems have a lot of construction jobs/Bar Jobs so i am sure with a good work attitude a person could do awful well for him/herself .:)

It would be hard not to work here from my experience, I just received an email asking me to come in for an interview for a little part time work on the side of my current job

My gf is an engineer with no experience, she's hardly had time to look for a job in that because shes been working since we arrived, first some xmas work which she got offered a full time job out of. Then she got call backs from others she applied for but turned them away because they only offered minimum wage. Granted these are for places like Ticketmaster etc but the point I'm trying to make is you may not make alot but theres noway you'll be ringing Mummy after 3 months (But being an Irish mammy she'll require a minimum of 2 calls a week anyway). So for people like you Ross who want to get on to the rigs etc just watch out for that, don't get sidetracked by your job etc.

ShooterSF

Thanks Martyn for a very detailed response. I have 10 years bar work but not much food service so hopefully I'll get something. I might look into Alberta as it keeps coming up thread after thread.
(Sorry OP for hijacking btw!)

Martyn1989

ShooterSF wrote: »

Thanks Martyn for a very detailed response. I have 10 years bar work but not much food service so hopefully I'll get something. I might look into Alberta as it keeps coming up thread after thread.
(Sorry OP for hijacking btw!)

You'll have no problem finding work here, hand out your resumes in person between 2 and 4 in the afternoon and if you haven't started by the weekend I'd be very surprised. There's a few differences in how your expected to work here and I found it tough the first week or so but a guy with your experience will breeze into it. Best of luck.

hdowney

Should you change up your resume from how it would look over here? Different styles in different countries and all. Thinking of adding a little info on mine. I was training to be a chef - didn't get very far though cos I got quite sick and the school said that ye weren't allowed into the kitchens if you were sick But think I'd put as much info about me as possible on it yakno

A_Sober_Paddy

Sorry to be derailing the thread(if i am)...

Just wondering what kind of work is there for a business graduate with 5 years experience in retail?

I'm currently working but I've always wanted to go to Canada and at the moment the drive to get there is probably in first gear but I'm sure before the year is out it'll be back into 4-5 gear...

Cheers in advance for replies

frankspencer

A_Sober_Paddy wrote: »

Sorry to be derailing the thread(if i am)...

Just wondering what kind of work is there for a business graduate with 5 years experience in retail?

I'm currently working but I've always wanted to go to Canada and at the moment the drive to get there is probably in first gear but I'm sure before the year is out it'll be back into 4-5 gear...

Cheers in advance for replies

I am also a recent business graduate (with plenty of experience in manufacturing)...is there jobs in the oil sands for business grads or is all the skilled work for trades and engineer's

jiminho

frankspencer wrote: »

My mate is in Red Dear Alberta, told me they will take anyone on for oil rig work but he works 12 hour day for three weeks straight so it is tough work!.

What's your mates name frank? Seems like the only Irish folk in this city work with me.

BTW anyone can get a job in Fort Mac but it's not living. 3 weeks on 1 week off is the usual. The week off is spent dreading going back. Not a way to live regardless of how much money your making

frankspencer

jiminho wrote: »

What's your mates name frank? Seems like the only Irish folk in this city work with me.

BTW anyone can get a job in Fort Mac but it's not living. 3 weeks on 1 week off is the usual. The week off is spent dreading going back. Not a way to live regardless of how much money your making

He was moved on since I was last talking to him,he is now in a place called fort nelson? in B.C.
I really want to make some serious money and I know I wont make it in Ireland.Where is the best place in Alberta to source some work?