malwajatt

Dear All,

I am thinking of the feasibility of moving to Canada and was looking for some guidance.....especially on salaries so get the ball rolling...

BackGround: I am a Chartered Mechanical Engineer (IMechE UK) having 10 years of experience in project management and technical advisory roles in Nuclear Power Generation .....I am currently working in EDF Energy in UK. For completeness I also have a M.Sc degree.

The places I am thinking of targeting are : Toronto, Edmonton , Calgary.

I would be obliged if the forum members can answer a few questions

1) The salary range that I can expect in my field if I get work in the above cities

2) The current job market in Canada with respect to Utility engineers. I am also thinking of targeting oil and gas as the skills I have are transferable.....

3) I am hoping to find a job so that I can get a work permit.......then move with my family and kids. I am also in the process of getting my qualifications assessed by the Comparative Education Service (University of Toronto). Is my strategy correct ?

thanks in anticipation,

Malwajatt

Jwtlb

Try for Calgary or Edmonton over Toronto as housing is lethally expensive in Toronto. C Eng isn't really recognised in Canada, you'll have to do a P Eng taking a year or so of hard graft to gain the equivalent status although it probably wont affect a job offer.

Salaries - I ended up pulling out of what appeared to be a very good job offer after I worked out following deductions and the cost of housing in GTA I had a far higher disposable income in the UK that I would end up with in Canada........

As others have said, it isn't a bed of roses anymore ! Make a couple of trips to get a feel on house prices/ cost of living etc etc. One other point, reckon on losing at least a week of holiday vs the UK allowance !!

Good luck !

agr

I'm a CEng MIMechE and a PEng in Alberta. The professional associations that protect the profession, err, sorry "protect the public", conduct salary surveys each year. In Alberta it's APEGA. Not sure whether they publish results outside their members but I would think you could expect to make over $100k once you have your PEng.

It seems to me that O&G and power are worlds apart. To practice as an engineer in utilities I think you would need to be in the quasi-masonic world of pressure vessels. Maybe I'm jaundiced! All the nuclear work is in ON, QC and NB. If you have any interest in novel technologies, then utilities (at least in AB) are probably not for you.

agr

Regarding the qualifications, as far as I know the professional association in your destination province will do its own assessment - I don't think they take anyone else's word for it. If you have good transcripts to MSc level (in engineering, obviously), and referees from all your past engineering jobs who will say you were practicing engineering, you should find that you need only sit the professional practice exam (ethics and law) and get a year's Canadian experience to get PEng. However, you would need to be a Permanent Resident for PEng. If you are on a work permit then you would need a foreign licence (see http://www.apega.ca/Applicants/pdf/IEGBrochure.pdf).

Jingsamichty

In O&G you could double that.

huddm

Malwajatt

I currently work for EDF Energy (Nuclear Generation) and also spent 8 years in the Canadian power generation industry. I earned $87K + 20% bonus in 2005 as a Branch Manager, so you need to add inflation for the last 7 years.

When I left BE in 1997 I worked for ATCO power, near Hanna, Alberta. I did find I did have to talk a pretty big paycut. I worked for my first 9 months in Canada in the oil/gas, found its safety culture no where near BE's. I would be expected to drive 12+ hours then work a 12 hour shift on a a drilling rig.

If you want to move to Canada from my own experience I would recommend looking at Bruce Power or OPG as I found that there are more Brits in the power industry in Ontario, than Alberta. You do not need P Eng to work in the power generation industry, your MSc is good enough. Have a look at AMEC/AECL in Canada.

PM if you have any questions.
Hudd

malwajatt

Dear All,

Thank you all for your responses and advice based on ur individual experiences. Much obliged.

Cheers
MAlwajatt

Atlantic Xpat

There was another thread sometime ago about someone who was planning to get a job with Bruce/OPG. Collective wisdom was that this was pretty much impossible without having relations there. A forum search should turn it up.

Nik G

Have a look at workingincanada.gc.ca in the wages section.

It gives you the prevailing wage for each profession (mech engineer is in there). It separates the rates in to Low Mid and High (low being entry level). So you would probably be High level which would put you at 62$/hr in alberta.

Bear in mind though this is just a mimimum wage that an employer has to pay you to get an approved Labour Market Opinion. They can pay you more then that. You might count as an engineering manager which pushes you salary up a fair chunk.

gryphea

For Alberta the APEGA salary survey can be found here:
http://www.apega.ca/members/publicat...arysurvey.html

Its quite easy to work out roughly what you should be on; maybe undercut it a bit for lack of canadian experience