How to Find a Job in Canada

Canada has claimed a spot in the world’s top five countries to live and work abroad for the last two years. Expats ranked Canada as the 3^rd  best country to live and work in HSBC’s most recent expat explorer survey. Canada scored highly for factors like income, economic stability, and work/life balance, which are just a few of the reasons why Canada is a great country to move to. In this blog Send My Bag offer you guidance on finding a job in Canada.

Types of Work Visas

Types of work visas in Canada can vary depending on how long you intend to stay and other more specific requirements. Open work permits are common for temporary stays in Canada and for people who don’t intend to work for one set employer or in a particular field of work. The application process for this type of work permit can take several weeks to process and you need to provide proof that you plan to leave Canada upon expiration of your work permit and proof of sufficient funds to return home. There are also employer-specific work permits, which are also temporary but can be extended from inside Canada. The main difference with this permit is that it is job-specific, and therefore, in most cases a job offer from a Canadian employer is required. Another requirement is that the employer must apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) who decide whether the employer can hire a foreign worker.

If you intend on staying in Canada permanently, you must go through the online express entry system and you need to be a skilled worker in a specific industry. The three types of skilled worker immigration programs are Federal Skilled Worker, Federal Skilled Trades, Canadian Experience Class. They have some different eligibility requirements, but generally you are required to have 1+ years’ work experience in your skilled area of work. The online express entry system is based on a points system, whereby you need to score a minimum of 67 points to qualify for the skilled worker immigration programs. Some of the things that you’re scored on include your education (proof of Canadian or international education), experience (how many years you’ve spent doing full-time, paid) and arranged employment in Canada. You can find out if you’re eligible to apply under the Express Entry System via the Come to Canada Tool on the Government of Canada website.

Best jobs in Canada 

Often referred to as the Silicon Valley of the North, Canada has a huge tech industry that has been attracting many immigrants. A Financial Times report referred to the fact that 82,100 tech jobs were added in Toronto between 2012-2017, in comparison to 77,830 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The same Financial Times report pointed out that through Canada’s Global Skills Strategy, introduced two years ago as a new immigration policy for Canadian employees to obtain access to skilled employees from other countries, the most common jobs were developers, computer analysts, and software engineers. The latest Canadian Tech Talent Ranking showed that the main centres for tech-focused businesses in Canada are Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver. Toronto ranked first as the best market for tech employment, followed by Ottawa (2^nd) and Vancouver (3^rd).

Recruitment agency Randstad released a list of the roles that are most in demand in 2020. The top 15 were as follows:

1. Sales Associate
2. Driver
3. Receptionist
4. Welder
5. Developer
6. Business Development Manager
7. General Labourer
8. Project Manager
9. Heavy Duty Mechanic
10. Merchandiser
11. Electrical Engineer
12. Accountant
13. HR Manager
14. Financial Advisor
15. Registered Nurse

Canadian Work Culture

In HSBC’s 2019 expat explorer survey, work-life balance was one of the key factors leading to Canada’s top position as one of the world’s best countries to live and work! Canadians working hours are known to be less than Americans and in general more flexible, with an article by the Business Insider pointing out that there are more breaks during the working day, more vacation time, and benefits when it comes to parental leave in Canada than in The USA.

Where to find a job?

There are immigrant-serving organizations in Canada that you can use to help with your job search and application, by offering things like résumé writing workshops and job search training sessions. General job vacancy websites in Canada include Monster, Canadajobs.com, Workopolis, Canadian Immigrant, Government of Canada’s job bank. Some of the most popular recruitment agencies in Canada include Aerotek, Randstad, Pinnacle, and Echo.

Top Companies to Work for in Canada (2019)

Forbes identified 50 of the best employers in Canada in 2019. Most of the headquarters for these companies are in Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa and the dominating industries appeared to be IT, Internet, Software & Services, education, retail and wholesale. The top 20 Canadian employers were as follows:

1. Google
2. University of Toronto
3. Avis Budget Group
4. Pratt & Whitney
5. Saint Mary’s University
6. Hydro-Quebec
7. Ubisoft
8. Concordia University
9. Microsoft
10. RTL Longueuil
11. FedEx
12. Apple
13. General Dynamics
14. Universite de Sherbrooke
15. 3M
16. Michelin North America
17. Queen’s University
18. Cisco Systems
19. Johnson & Johnson
20. City of Ottawa

You will find a job that is suited to you in Canada! Don’t stress too much about finding the perfect job and remember to enjoy the excitement of moving abroad. If you need to send luggage ahead to Canada, Send My Bag can provide you with fast and affordable door to door delivery.