Saturday 8 October 2011

Ah, so, yes...

Shelly, the soft-shelled turtle at Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller
Okay, so I promised to tell you about the job right here at the Best Western Inn & Suites South Edmonton (can I just shorten that to BWISSETON?) and whether or not I got it. Well... I don't know! Let me explain how it works for me.

In contrast to people who arrive in this country with a permanent residency and are able to then do whatever the jellybeans they like, I can only enter this country on a Temporary Work Visa. This has to do with the points system used to get a PR and for which I never get enough. I believe right now you need a total of about 67 points which are made up of age, languages spoken, education, line of work, work experience and a few more things. And even though my languages push it right up there, my lack of education plus my line of work and work experience just leave me short one or two points. I am of course the nicest person in the whole wide world and am willing and able to do a lot of things, but that won't help me get accepted with a PR. So, I need a TWV.

Calgary
In order for me to get a TWV, I need a job. Of course my preferred job would be something in the bus industry like a busdriver or a scheduler, but both those jobs are low-skilled (don't ask) and even though they are much in demand here, especially further up north, I wouldn't be able to change my TWV into a PR after a few years. Which is my goal. So, I have to go back to an earlier job of hotel receptionist or front desk agent, which is also low-skilled. However this job would enable me to change the TWV into a PR after a few years. And once I've got my PR I could whatever I like.

Getting back to the Temporary Work Visa though. Because I need a job for that. A guaranteed job. Which means I've been job hunting for the first time in over a decade, pounding the pavement of Edmonton and Red Deer, handing out resumés and hoping some good will come of it. And as you know I had a short meeting with the manager of the hotel I am staying in. I could tell he was interested, after all, I am the nicest person in the whole wide world and willing... you get the drift. However, him being interested isn't enough. He has to offer me a job. And in order for him to offer me the job we need one more thing: a Labour Market Opinion or LMO for short.

Garden at Government Building in Banff
When a company wants to hire me (or any foreigner), it has to apply for an LMO which basically is an official piece of paper stating that the company hasn't been able to find a Canadian to do the job I would be willing to do. It takes between 1 and 2 months to process an LMO, but basically, if a company is willing to try for an LMO, I've got the job and it would then give me between 1 and 2 months to get everything sorted in the Netherlands.

So, what does all of this have to do with the BWISSETON? Well, the initial interest is there, but the manager has to pass my details on to the owner of the hotel to see if he is willing to submit for an LMO. They have done in the past, so at least that is a good thing, but now they would have to do so for me. If the owner is willing to apply for an LMO for me, I can quit my job and my home, start packing, get the monsters a health thingymebob, get the tickets and sort everything else out as well. Once I've got the LMO itself I need to go to the Canadian Embassy in Berlin (another trip, yeah) to get my passport sorted, fly out here and get my stuff validated and then I can work for as long as the TWV is valid. If however, the job proves to be awful and I would want another job, I would need to through the whole thing again: switching jobs with an LMO is a massive no-no!

So, that's it in a nutshell, albeit quite a large nutshell. Any questions?

6 comments:

  1. Oh yes, a very large nutshell. It's a good thing Dick is out refereeing football, because he'd be apt to say something about what it takes to fill a large nutshell, and of course we couldn't let him say that.
    Great photos, by the way.
    I can't believe bus driving is considered low-skilled. Do the mothers of the children in the school buses know that? I should start an uprising, er, protest.
    Well, you know I would do it if it would help.
    Keeping fingers and toes crossed,
    K

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  2. Oh goodness! All the red tape. You would think that someone who is willing to work and the other people want a good worker, it would be a great match.
    Still if you are wanting to work over here I guess it's worth jumping through all the hoops. Eventually it will all be behind you. Hang in there!

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  3. and in the past they made publicity in Europe to get people to Canada ! Reminds me that I even needed a workpermit for Belgium because I was German (still am on my passport) a year later that fortunately changed. If they hadn't needed somebody German and English speaking they never would have applied for a work permit for me ! I cross my fingers !

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  4. You definitely need to be dedicated. And committed. And by committed, I realize I'm not quite sure how I mean that!
    I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for you.

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  5. Love your photos. You have so much to do but because you want it I am sure it is worth all the work involved in getting it. Hope they do the LMO and get the job. Then I hope you love it!

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  6. I'm keeping everything crossed for you. You brave person! I'd be tired only thinking of all the hassle involved. Good luck!!! If they need someone to confirm that you are the nicest person etc. they can call me. As long as they don't ask me about your taste in curtains ;-)

    Love the horse statue.

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Any weighty (and not so weighty) comments are welcome!