ormrod7

I have never been on this site before im normally on the Australian forum, as we want emigrate to Brisbane in a couple of years.
My husband applied for a job in our local paper (we live in Barrow-in-Furness,Cumbria. Nr Lake District) for a job agency called Roevin who were looking for electricians to go to Alberta Calgary nr Fort something the money is very good plus he gets his accommodation,food,medical expenses plus 3 return flights home plus the chance to get sponsered after the year if you like it there, he is on a 12 week on 2 weeks home.
Just wondered what its like there and if anyone has any advice they d like to tell me about.

iaink

All the Fort somethings I know of in Alberta are pretty remote communites.

Important to know which Fort I suspect. If its any of the northern communities I'm thinking of. like McMurray , then think of it as like working on a rig. A cold cold dark one in the winter at that.

McLeod is the closest to Calgary, might be OK if its that one.

Mapquest dug up these...
Fort Assiniboine, AB, CA
Fort Chipewyan, AB, CA
Fort Fitzgerald, AB, CA
Fort Kent, AB, CA
Fort Mackay, AB, CA
Fort Macleod, AB, CA
Fort Mcmurray, AB, CA
Fort Saskatchewan, AB, CA
Fort Vermilion, AB, CA
Fort Vermilion Chutes, AB, CA

ormrod7

Yeah i ve just looked on one of the emails they sent us it is Fort McMurray im sorry about my lack of knowledge of Calgary have nt had chance to look it up properly everything moving so fast .

Calgal

Fort Mcmurray is way up in the North east of Alberta (Way north of Edmonton). Booming local economy due to new oil, or so I heard. People are moving there in droves and paying a fortune to rent trailers, apparently.

Rich_007

You'll find some basic background info here:

http://www.fortmcmurraytoday.com/
http://www.fortmcmurraytourism.com/
http://www.fortmcmurrayalberta.ca/

Good luck, it's not a central location, probably doesn't have a diverse population (worth you checking out some stats from Statistics Canada) though recent influx may impact this, not really close to very much, probably an amazing location in the summer, winters would need a hardy, robust attitude to say the least but there's nothing wrong with a good winter, most of Canada has a season of deep winter conditions but this is handled appropriately with suitable vehicles, road clearing, home insulation, good suitable clothing, and much ski and snowboarding fun whatever the cold weather. Generally speaking I think you'd need to have a bit of a genuine frontier mentality to get the best out of a move there.

It would certainly be a complete lifestyle and culture change for anyone coming from the UK. I'd say research, research, research and find out exactly what you're considering before making any serious considerations. Then if you like the sound of what you hear, get to see it at first hand preferably in winter as a true reality check.

Good luck,

Rich.

dbd33

At one point it was the city with the fourth largest number of Newfoundlanders, I'd think there are more Newfies there now.

On edit :

third, according to this, Newfies make up 1/3 of the population :

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/speci...gowest-ab.html

but I don't know if they considered Toronto or Dallas.

Atlantic Xpat

Yeah, its destination #1 for Newfoundlanders who leave to go to the mainland for work. There was a couple of features on Fort McMurray in the local news recently. Lots of well paying jobs but a consequent boom in prices of everything, especially real estate mean that people are paying a fortune to live in appartments, houses, garages, trailers & tents! If you have a job living in a work camp then I suspect thats OK cost wise, but I imagine accomodation and leisure facilities are a little basic!

I guess its rather like working in offshore oil although 12 weeks on and 2 weeks off seems a bit crappy & a long time to be away from the family. Particularly yer actual offshore oil work seems to be 21 days on 21 days off or 28 days on 28 days off.

All in all I cant imagine it would be a good place to move your family to. Although if it gets you PR quicker then mebbe worthwhile. Not sure btw how 'being sponsored' is going to work unless there is some sort of provincial nominee programme.

Rich_007

Link to PNP scheme in Alberta:

http://www.alberta-canada.com/pnp/

It's amazing what employers will advertise as 'sponsorship' - guess it can include all sorts including provision of a bivouac for accomodation

Rich.

dbd33

That is, however, how the Newfoundland workforce lives in Ontario. My former sister-in-common-law has a rent geared to income apartment in Scarborough, she couldn't work because that'd increase the rent so she made money by providing a flat surface for transient workers to sleep on. Others live in trailer parks all around the city. Another former relative even rents the garage to more summer workers. It's all a bit crowded and, bye, they must get some sick of hearing Steve and Aggie but it's a place to crash until you've got the stamps for the winter.

AnyaT

Fort McMurray likely has the most booming economy of any area in Canada, due to the extreme demand for oil field workers. From what I understand, salaries are very high. However, something to keep in mind is that the infrastructure has not kept up with the population expansion, so there are shortages of housing, hospitals, schools, etc. I think the vast majority of people moving to Fort McMurray are young, single, and "rough & ready". The work is tough and physicially harsh, the location is isolated, the climate is extreme with dark almost around the clock through the winter, and I have read that the suicide rate is one of the highest in Canada. All in all, it is the sort of place you go to for a couple years to earn a lot of money, then move elsewhere.

I don't want to discourage you entirely, but I think it would be a big shock for your family to move there. As Rich said, if you can look at it first you would have a much better idea if you could handle the change. If you do want to pursue the sponsorship route offered, you may want to consider your husband working there for a year while you remain in the UK, then after he has his permanent residency he could sponsor you and move elsewhere.

Judy in Calgary

I'd take an assignment in Fort McMurray over an assignment in Iraq any day.