BC Trucking Association Seeks 25 Immigrant Truck Drivers For Pilot Project

Veronica538 at work as truckdriver
Veronica538 at work as truckdriver (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
LANGLEY -The BC Trucking Association (BCTA) has developed a new skills assessment tool called IDRIVE and is looking for 25 recent immigrants with professional truck-driving experience to participate in a pilot test to be scheduled in November or December 2013.

BCTA is working with BC motor carriers to find ways to address a shortage of professional drivers that could run as high as 33,000 across Canada by 2020,according to a Conference Board of Canada study.”Immigrants to Canada are a valuable source of labour for the industry but may need help representing their skills to employers here,” says Louise Yako,BCTA President & CEO. “And BC employers need to know how driving experience from outside Canada rates in BC, where regulations, equipment, and geography may be quite different.”To assist, BCTA has partnered with the Asia Pacific Gateway Skills Table to develop a truck driver skill and experience assessment tool with input from motor carriers.

IDRIVE stands for “Immigrant Driver Readiness – Industry Validation and Engagement,” and it reviews the professiona lexperience of drivers who are new to Canada, to provide them with a verified report on their readiness for employmentin BC. IDRIVE tests industry knowledge, essential skills, employability characteristics (including customer service skills) and driving skills.

IDRIVE is made possible by the Immigrant Employment Council of BC.Funding is provided by the Governmentof Canada and the Province of BritishColumbia.”We are pleased to support the BCTA’s immigrant driver readiness tool that will help employers understand and benefit from the experience and skills of BC’s immigrant labour pool,” says Kelly Pollack, Executive Director of the Immigrant Employment Council of BC.IDRIVE is now ready for a pilot test, and BCTA invites 25 immigrant drivers to participate, to make sure that both drivers and trucking industry employers can depend on its results.

Assessments can take place throughout the province depending on where drivers are located.Participants must not be employed currentlyin the trucking industry, but must live in BC and have a BC Class 1 commercial driver’s licence – or be willing to obtain one within the timeframe of the pilot project, which includes a road test.They must have at least one year of professional driving experience, here or in another country, read and write basic English, and be eligible to work in Canada, among a few other requirements.In return, participants receive a copy of their IDRIVE assessment, and BCTA will work to connect them with motorcarriers interested in the pilot and looking for drivers to hire
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Travel and Work in Canada

English: Banff Park Museum National Historic S...
English: Banff Park Museum National Historic Site, Banff, Alberta, Canada (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Make your dream of travelling and working abroad a reality! International Experience Canada gives you the information and resources you need to travel and work in Canada for up to one year.

You’ve always dreamed of spending a year living and working in Canada. Maybe you want to work at a ski resort in Banff... gain valuable work experience in the financial district in downtown Toronto... or do an internship entirely in French in Quebec City.

International Experience Canada (IEC) manages Canada’s youth mobility arrangements and agreements with different countries around the world. 


These arrangements and agreements make it easier for you to obtain a work permit to travel and work in Canada for up to one year.
Work permits under IEC are available to young people aged 18-35* who are from one of the countries that have a bilateral reciprocal youth mobility arrangement or agreement with Canada. Consult the list below for participating countries to see if your country of origin has a bilateral reciprocal youth mobility arrangement or agreement with Canada. Click on the name of your country to be redirected to the corresponding Embassy of Canada website for specific application details.

Can’t find your country in the list? Connect with one of these recognized organizations for other travel and work opportunities in Canada.

Over the age of 35?* Contact us for information on other work permit options.

Country
Territory
Working
Holiday
Young
Professionals
International
Coop
AustraliaYesYesYes
AustriaNoYesYes
BelgiumYesNoNo
ChileYesYesYes
Costa RicaYesYesYes
CroatiaYesYesYes
Czech RepublicYesYesYes
DenmarkYesNoNo
EstoniaYesYesYes
FranceYesYesYes
GermanyYesYesYes
GreeceYesYesYes
Hong KongYesNoNo
IrelandYesNoNo
ItalyYesNoNo
JapanYesNoNo
Korea, Rep.YesNoNo
LatviaYesYesYes
LithuaniaYesYesYes
MexicoYesYesYes
NetherlandsYesYesNo
New ZealandYesNoNo
NorwayYesYesYes
PolandYesYesYes
SlovakiaYesYesYes
SloveniaYesYesYes
SpainYesYesYes
SwedenYesYesYes
SwitzerlandNoYesYes
TaiwanYesYesYes
UkraineYesYesYes
United KingdomYesNoNo

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Transitioning from Semi-Skilled Worker Status to Canadian Permanent Residency

Recruitment Day
Recruitment Day (Photo credit: Middle Island Fire Department)
By David Cohen
Over 300,000 temporary foreign workers currently reside in Canada. They perform vital jobs in a wide array of professions and skill levels. Economic prosperity in Canada is increasingly dependent on workers who perform ‘semi-skilled’ occupations. These workers can be found in a range of key sectors, including but not limited to trucking, hospitality, construction, and manufacturing.
According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), semi-skilled work requires a secondary-school level of education, and/or on the job training in order to perform. However, it does not necessarily require post-secondary education. Semi-skilled occupations are classified as ‘C’ level in Canada’s National Occupation Classification (NOC), which organizes Canadian jobs according to their industry and the level of skill required to perform them. In addition to semi-skilled (NOC ‘C’ level) jobs, there are skilled jobs (NOCs A and B levels) and managerial jobs (NOC 0 level). Below semi-skilled are unskilled jobs, which are classified as NOC level D.
Most economically-driven Canadian immigration programs require workers to have experience in a ‘skilled’ job (NOC 0, A, or B levels). However, semi-skilled workers already in Canada may have a number of immigration options available to them, should they choose to pursue a Permanent Residency application.
In this article, the first in a two-part series, CIC News will explore the various programs that offer permanent residency options to semi-skilled (and sometimes unskilled) workers:
Options for Semi-Skilled Workers
All economic immigration programs with semi-skilled worker streams come under the Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs). These programs are tailored to suit the labour needs of individual provinces. As such, no two are exactly the same. Interested applicants are encouraged to research what sort of regulations and requirements a program needs before applying.
In this article, CIC News will briefly outline five PNPs that include a semi-skilled worker component. In the next mid-month newsletter, we will explore the final five PNPs. Be aware that applicants to all PNP programs now require applicants to meet meet minimum language requirements in either English or French:
Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP):
  • Employer Driven Stream/Semi-Skilled Worker Category
    • Semi-skilled workers in the following five industries may be eligible to apply to this stream: Food and Beverage Processing, Hotel and Lodging, Manufacturing, Trucking, Foodservice.
    • An unlimited amount of candidates in the fields of front desk/clerk, room attendant, food and beverage processors, heavy haul truckers of all types, and food services will be accepted by the program until November 28th, 2013.
    • Applicants must be currently living in Alberta and working in the province for at least six months. Minimum total work experience in the field ranges from 6 months (trucking) to three years (food and beverage).
    • English language requirements for semi-skilled workers applying through the AINP program are less stringent than requirements for skilled workers
  • Strategic Recruitment Stream/Compulsory and Optional Trades Category
  • Long Haul Truck Driver Stream
    • Truck drivers must be working in the industry in Saskatchewan for a minimum of 6 months, and have a total of 2 years of experience. They must have an eligible job offer from an employer in the field.
    • They must possess Saskatchewan Class 1A license and be able to drive to the United States.
  • Hospitality Sector Pilot Project
    • Food/Beverage Servers, Food Counter Attendant/Kitchen Helpers, and Housekeeping/Cleaning Staff may be eligible under this stream
    • Applicants must be living in Saskatchewan and must have worked for at least 6 months in one of the above industries.
  • Strategic Occupations Stream/Entry-Level and Semi-Skilled Worker Category
    • Semi-skilled workers in the following three industries may be eligible to apply to this stream: Tourism and Hospitality, Long-Haul Trucking, and Food Processing.
    • Both semi-skilled and unskilled (NOC levels C and D) workers may be eligible to apply provided they are living and working in Northeastern British Columbia. This is provided as part of the Northeast Pilot Project.
  • Skilled Worker Applicants with Employer Support Stream
    • Workers in occupations at NOC C and D levels in the following industries may be eligible for this program: business, health, sales, trades/transportation, natural resources, and manufacturing. They must have been working for more than a year with their New Brunswickemployer. They must also receive an eligible job offer from the employer.
    • Applications to this program are assessed on a points scale. Applicants must meet the 50 point mark to qualify for the program. Points are allocated on the basis of age, education, work experience, language ability and overall adaptability.
  • Employer Direct Stream
    • NOC C and D level workers may be eligible for this program provided that they have been living and working in Manitoba for 6 months prior to submission of their application. They must hold an eligible job offer from a Manitoba employer.
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