Foreign Pilots

[winterlog]

_{There is no doubt that business moves faster than government and when business is moving, finding workers can become a problem and strangle Canadian business. The foreign worker program has been in place for over 40 years however, the Harper government has speeded up the process to as little as 10 business days and has offered a premium to business in that it is legal to pay these foreign workers 15% less than the going rate. Thankfully, a disgruntled displaced RBC worker took his story to the media and mainstream Canadians are learning what we in this industry have known for a good many years. Canadian business needs an avenue to access workers whether Canada can supply them or not and some sort of foreign worker program has got to be in place to meet that need. However, Harpers 15% for less foreign worker program is exactly backwards this program should be offered where the foreign workers are offered the work at the going rate with a "premium" maybe that 15%, paid by the corporation back to the Canadian people in the form of tax to fund job skills programs to deal with Canadian worker skills shortages. This does a number of things, first it reduces the incentive of cheap labour, it would only be used when absolutely needed and, it could provide funding to an education system that directly benefits those industries that clearly need the skilled help. Walking into a Tim Hortins and being served by a worker that is being paid 15% less than their colleagues is a place Canada can do far better than exploitation, no matter where they are from.}

[Kitchen]

 

I do hear what hybrid says about not being able to find workers who will put in an honest day's work and it sickens me to see how some people "steal" from their employers. A coffee shop or a discount retailer is not the same as a helicopter company but there is some crossover with the work culture. People who come from poorer countries know what it's like to do without and all those "undesirable" jobs get taken by foreigners. Are we going to follow the footsteps of Germany with the Turks, the USA with the Mexicans, England and France with their former African colonials? (and many more examples...) We all know how that is turning out. But helicopters is not coffee shop, for the one you need a +/- $65,000 education and for the other you might formerly have been a goat herder.

 

On the one hand i want to support our country and our pilots but do have sympathy with the companies too with regards to the lazy kids(and older guys) that think touching a broom or sorting the ops gear or even showing up on time is beneath them. I have never been afraid of hard work, my first job other than throwing hay bales for a neighbor starting when i was 11 was as a janitor when i was 15 and i have been paying my own way ever since, not always doing the glamorous job but making a living. I remember being told not too long ago by a coworker not to come in so early or start working right away because then they will expect "us" all to do it. Hey buddy, if you are reading this, you are a worthless piece of trash and i am glad i don't have to pick up the slack for you anymore (have another smoke break, looser...).

 

End of rant... (what's yours?) LOL

I started out as heli logging ground crew then worked a fertilizer bagging machine, drove a parts van, swept more square feet of hangar than i can count, polished and cleaned and if i can say one thing it's that anyone i have worked for remembers me and not because i slacked off but because i got things done, worked without being asked or needing an eye kept on me.

W.

PS hybrid, entry level isn't just 100 hours...

 

Nice!

[shakey]

Slow year so far this year and I know a pile of higher time guys not working (all Canadians) So the way I see it there should be no pilots on permits working! The companies that need to fill positions with foriegn pilots this year.

1. Pay the Sh1ts 2. Treat their employees like #### and 3. Should be weeded out of the industry so good companies that pay well, treat employees well and keep the industry to a higher standard keep running strong.

 

It only makes sense to me but hey I'm not a bleeding heart Liberal.

[Helilog56]

Really ....a slow year????!!?? Damit, why wasn't I told this sooner..???!!???

[shakey]

Really ....a slow year????!!?? Damit, why wasn't I told this sooner..???!!???

Do you talk to anyone else in this industry or just sticking to with yourself in the mirror?

[Helilog56]

Really it's more like me sticking my head in the sand.....

[lineworker]

Last year I stuck my head in at Guardian in Springbank and tried to collect some money owed since I last visited in 06, and there were 4 Aussies. (Didn't get paid of course, never will, oh well)

 

The guys were great guys, you could see on their faces that they were in a living ****, I know, I remember.

[shakey]

Last year I stuck my head in at Guardian in Springbank and tried to collect some money owed since I last visited in 06, and there were 4 Aussies. (Didn't get paid of course, never will, oh well)

 

The guys were great guys, you could see on their faces that they were in a living ****, I know, I remember.

My point exactly! If no one in their right mind works for these type of operators they simply go away. I had a friend apply there years ago as a 100 hr guy and turned down a job offer after meeting the owner and seeing how he rolled. "No Canadian will work for me lets get a foriegn person they will do anything or I'll get them sent home"

 

Nothing personal against the guys its the standard that they are feeding is what I don't agree with.

[HeliRico]

..

 

Still got the chills ..

[afzrotor]

I have to make a comment here. I came from Zimbabwe and converted my licence to Canadian. I had to jump through a lot of hoops, etc to get here. I was paid the same as everyone, no more, no less. I did have some experience which was required. I became a landed immigrant within a year. I will be applying for citizenship this year. I think foreign pilots helped in the boom times and i have seen much less foreign pilots the last couple of years. We have a place in Canada, keeping the industry going. However, i have noticed that for the low timer, it is extremely tough, there are few stepping stones jobs to build hours here.

 

I had to put up with politics in Zim, waiting two years to get licenced because of the shenanigans. However, i never gave up! Anyone in this industry has to be determined! The process whittles out those who are not! Many are not suited for it. If Canadians can work internationally, then the reverse has to be true too, it's only fair! This country provides opportunity for those with ambition, it only requires someone to take them and maximise it! The western world has become full of ambitionless, entitled people. Foreigners tend to come from countries that are harder to live and work in and that fact equips them with a different mentality, which enables them to persevere. I support the idea of locals first in any country but where foreign pilots can help, then they should be allowed to as well.