pscott

Hi , i'm just after a bit of advise really , my wife is a canadian passport holder and we are in the process of getting canadian passports for our two children (8+5) , I am a carpenter by trade but have moved up the career ladder and am currently a site manager ,the recession and life in general is making us think that a new life in canada may be the way to go, I think the general Vancouver area would be our preference to live as i dont fancy shovelling 6 foot of snow off my drive every day!! How is the construction industry doing at the moment? could i get a job at site management/supervisor level as i dont have any qualifications only experience in that field or would i need to go back on the tools to start with. How much do carpenters earn? And finally what sort of area is best for a young family who love the outdoors life ,need good schools and would have about $300,000 to spend on accommodation.
Thanks for any comments you may have.

JonboyE

The construction industry around Vancouver is on the up after a pretty dismal 2008/09 but it is not yet at full speed.

There are jobs around but also unemployed/underemployed construction workers. People with specific skills are finding work reasonably easily but generalists are still struggling. I expect you will be able to find work but you might have to put in a bit of effort.

Large companies like qualified site managers. In general in Canada most people have a bit of paper that says they are qualified to do what they say they can do. The smaller specialty contractors that I deal with usually run the sites themselves. However, when they have two or three jobs on the go they do look for people who can earn their place as a tradesman, but who can look after a site when the owner is away. This might be the best opportunity for you. These people do not advertise vacancies so it is up to you to let them know you are about and the skills you have to offer.

You will become an apprentice carpenter until you get your journeyman certificate. Expect to start around $25 an hour but if you are good this can soon rise to around $30. A lead hand who can supervise a site can earn $35. However, a lot depends on the general contractor and the budgets he gets to work with.

$300,000 won't go far if you want to be mortgage free. It will get a small townhouse (think terraced house) in one of the cheaper suburbs. For a detached family home you need to be thinking of $500,000 and up.

eastlands

I am a bricklayer on vancouver is & things are starting to pick up,ads here for joiners at around $25 p/hour +.