HannahSF

reddiva

Most Western fire fighters that i know here are now Managers in large companies such Emirates they all were working for other firms but were laid off last year ( They are all mid to late 40s) I dont think the Civil Defence fire service here employs many Westerners and if you look on linked in they all seem to be Arabic or Filipino,if they do hire Western staff then it is all done by word of mouth and through friends who work here ( Old boys club etc) Emirates provide education assistance which would be needed as otherwise would take a massive chunk out of your wages however they are very strict on the criteria for said roles An average British primary school costs 11,000GBP per year per child.
Most GCC countries would be the same with regards to the above criteria and to be perfectly honest the UAE is the most sought after place to work in as Oman has a huge drive to recruit their own nationals, Qatar isnt a great place to live, Bahrain is small and Saudi Arabia is on a huge drive to put their own nationals in . Does he have any ex FF friends who could advise? Most Warehouse Managers here are Asian as is their workforce. There used to be alot of Westerners doing this role but in the last few years companies hired cheaper staff who were fluent in multiple languages
Get him to look on linked in and see if he can connect with any guys here

Good Luck

Millhouse

Basically - the Middle East or any of the emerging markets will not be the right place to try this given your skills mix and number of kids. Look at developed countries ... like Australia, US, NZ etc.

Alan1978

I second that.

I went out to Dubai with 2 very young kids in 2011 and we returned to the UK by 2015 mainly due to escalating living costs. It's great if you both work or one of you has a fantastic job, however middle management or below you can forget it. It's a fantastic safe and wonderful place to live, but living is key to that lifestyle, merely surviving does not make for a great experience. The school costs alone for 2 kids are astronomic. Make sure you factor in all possible costs before you investigate further.

captainflack

I was in Dubai but we left specifically before our kids reached 3 because it is a bonkers place and a dictatorship and you really don't want to bring up kids there. Even aside from the costs, and whether your professions are going to be wanted there.

Going abroad is indeed an amazing opportunity for kids, but only if you go to somewhere that wants to open their eyes, not drill them to accept a feudal dictatorship's view of the world unquestioningly. And maybe lock them up for spying for MI6 if they ask the wrong questions.

Sheikh Mo has kidnapped and tortured two of his own daughters for stretching their wings a bit, so think about what regard the country might have for your kids!

scrubbedexpat141

The irony of a place not being good enough for your spawn which has (probably) afforded you (and your spawn) a more comfortable life is ****ing amazing.

scot47

In Saudi Arabia these jobs in "Civil Defence" ie Firefighting are held by locals with the assitsance of Filipinos and Bangladeshis.

reddiva

The poster hasnt been on since 05 Nov so i doubt they are reading the forum replies

captainflack

Actually, it's the most dangerous place I ever lived. Because although you're a quarter less likely to be murdered than in the UK, you're 5-10 times more likely to be killed in a road accident. And even in the UK (higher crime, safer roads), road accidents still kill far more people than murders.

It's hard to believe I know, considering the courteous nature of UAE drivers, the stringent tests they go through, and the rigid adherence to speed limits and maintaining safe distances, not to mention having the most honest, unbiased, hard working cops anywhere in the world. But the roads are actually rather dangerous.

captainflack

Not ironic at all. I went in with eyes open, to make some cash and get out before I end up in jail or dead in a smoking wreck on SZR. Doesn't mean I have to drink the kool-aid and start thinking feudal medieval government underpinned by a belief in magic sky fairies is the way to go. And maybe when my kids are older, they might choose to do the same (if it hasn't gone full Taliban and descended into bearded religious freaks in rusty toyota pickups fighting over rubble, like most arab states tend towards eventually).

scrubbedexpat141

So not ironic, you're just smarter than the entire Arab world. Gotcha.

scot47

Maybe she found a time machine and emigrated to an era more suited to her expectations.

christmasoompa

That was just the last time she posted.

If you click on a user's profile you should able to see when they last visited the forum, I don't think it's a mod thing, I'm sure I used to be able to do it before I became a mod?

co durham boy

Try Saudi , Qatar , Yemen and Africa for the driving fella . Dubai's like Piddeltrenthide in Dorset compared to those . Anyway a lot of what you say has a smear of truth but you sound a tad bitter

sicklyman

with of course, no influence from our own nation in that outcome, allowing us to justifiably judge from a distance how badly the 'arab states' are at managing their own affairs.