Great Opportunities for Pinoys to Move to Canada

THE employment and residency prospects for Filipinos in Canada remain bright as the Canadian government implements new immigration policies.

Cebu-based visa consultancy firm PinoyCare Visa Center said the Canadian government has recently updated its list of skill categories to 2,000, giving more options to Filipinos to land jobs and live permanently in Canada.

The Canadian government also launched early this year the Express Entry, a new application management system designed to approve a skilled worker’s application in Canada within six months or less.

“Canada has released new immigration guidelines this year...which gives more opportunities for Filipinos to make it to Canada faster,” said Bernie Uy, assistant vice president for marketing at PinoyCare.

“With the 2,000 skill categories released, it would now be impossible for any Filipino not to qualify,” said Prisca Niña Mabatid, chief executive officer of PinoyCare.

The Express Entry, according to the press release posted in the Canadian Embassy website, is seen “to contribute to Canada’s economic growth and international competitiveness.”

Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander said the new application management system is “designed to get people with the skills to succeed in Canada’s economy faster than ever.”

He noted that skilled workers who want to apply for Canada’s key economic immigration programs will have to create an online profile and express their interest in coming to Canada permanently.

Candidates who meet the minimum criteria will be accepted into the pool and will be ranked according to various factors which include language proficiency, education and work experience.

The highest ranking skilled workers (current pass mark is 67 points) will be invited to apply for permanent residence and their application will be processed in six months or less.

The first invitations to apply will be issued during the last week of January.

Candidates receiving an invitation must submit a full application within a delay of 60 days.

The Express Entry marks major progress for skilled foreign nationals and employers alike, according to the government, as it will allow the Citizenship and Immigration-Canada to identify those who are most likely to succeed economically in Canada, instead of simply processing applications on a first-come, first-served basis.

“It will result in faster processing and will allow the Government of Canada to be more flexible and respond better to Canada’s changing labor market needs,” the statement said.

The Express Entry will manage applications for three federal economic immigration programs: the FSW Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program and the Canadian Experience Class.

Mabatid said her company is ready to assist the application of Filipinos to Canada with the updated immigration policies, especially for the Express Entry program.

She said she went to Canada last year to personally study the program and the process with the help of immigration consultants. Part of the services they will offer is to ensure that the applicant will have an outstanding and impressive resumé, competitive enough to be considered for an invitation to apply for a permanent residence.

PinoyCare recorded 700 approved applications for Canada last year, mostly nurses and engineers.

Mabatid is set to open her Toronto and New Zealand PinoyCare branches this year. She is eyeing more expansions in areas abroad where there is high concentration of Filipino communities. PinoyCare has 12 branches in the Philippines.

Canada has admitted more than 1.6 million new permanent residents since 2006, and will admit between 260,000 and 285,000 in 2015 alone. Canada welcomed more than 260,000 new citizens in 2014.

By Katlene O. Cacho, Sunstar

Filipino Nurse is Living His Dream in Canada

Wouldn't it be nice to have a job that pays well and lets you travel at the same time?

That's what Mark Hernandez has been doing for the past three years now.

The 28-year-old Filipino is a travel nurse in Canada.

"Travel nurses are like 'locum' doctors. They come to isolated communities where they need healthcare staff. You are basically a hospital nurse. Sometimes, the only nurse in the community because they find it hard to recruit regular nurses," he explained.

Hernandez wanted better opportunities for himself so he applied online for a job in Canada. Five months later or in December 2009, he set foot in a new country he now calls home.

"I came to Canada by myself not knowing anybody," he said, adding that it was his first overseas job and also the first time to travel outside the Philippines.

The Far Eastern University (FEU-Manila) nursing graduate said his sponsor paid for everything and even gave him a five-figure Canadian dollar signing bonus.

His first job was working for the Heart Center of Vancouver's St. Paul's Hospital.

"Then I realized I am too young to be tied up and work for retirement so I considered other areas of nursing," he said.

Hernandez said choosing to be a travel nurse was a decision that he does not regret. He said it's one of the highest paid nursing speciality in Canada.

And for someone who likes adventure, going to places is already a plus for him.

"I love that you will be able to explore Canada. You are paid to explore the country. Hotels and Air Canada flights are free," he said.

 But is it worth it in terms of pay? Well, Hernandez's two houses and a bachelor's pad, plus a car--all in Canada--and the luxury to take leisure trips, probably says it all. Not only that, he is still able to help support his siblings' education back in the Philippines.

"I send my three siblings to school. One is taking up Masters of Science in Nursing (MSN), the other one Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy (BSPh), the youngest will be taking Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology," he said.

But just like other Filipinos working overseas, Hernandez also battled loneliness and isolation.

"The trick to life is you make it look easy," he said.

With all these blessings could there be anything else that he wants?

"I want to go back to school and put up a business," he said. Hernandez said he is thinking of pursuing medicine this time. As for business, he wants to open up a coffee shop in Canada someday.

Is there a secret to his success?

"Make yourself globally competitive and marketable. Invest on hard and soft skills, certificates and qualifications. We are known to be caring people, so relive the legacy," he said as an advice not just to aspiring Filipino travel nurses.

He noted that while we cannot prevent people from leaving the country in search of better opportunities overseas for themselves and their families, we can still encourage them to return and share the wealth of knowledge they learned abroad to future generations.

Walmart Canada To Hire 5,000 Applicants For Expansion

Retailer says construction, store and distribution centre jobs across Canada will flow from $340m expansions. Walmart has less competition since Target folded.

Walmart Canada unveiled a $340 million expansion plan for the coming year that is expected to generate 5,000 jobs across the country.

The announcement Wednesday comes in the wake of Target’s surprise departure from Canada, which will mean a lot less competition for Canada’s largest discount retailer.

The chain’s capital spending budget for the fiscal year ending Jan. 31, 2016 is about 30 per cent less than the $500 million Walmart Canada spent on store growth last year, and is mainly focused on expansion of existing stores into grocery items.

Of the 29 projects, 27 are conversions from regular discount stores to supercentres with full grocery departments, and 20 will not involve an increase of square footage, a Walmart spokesman said.

The location of those and two new supercentres that will be built this year are not yet being disclosed as plans are not yet finalized, the company said.

Analysts say the retail giant will likely pick up some of the stores that Target will vacate when it pulls up stakes this summer. Andrew Pelletier, vice president of corporate affairs and sustainability at Walmart Canada, told the Star it’s too early to speculate on acquiring available Target real estate.

The retailer says the latest expansion is expected to generate about 3,700 construction jobs, 1,000 store jobs and 300 distribution centre jobs across Canada.

The new supercentres are in addition to the 11 Walmart supercentres which opened across Canada in January.

Walmart Canada says the supercentre projects will cost about $230 million and include the remodelling and expansion of several stores to add full grocery departments.

Another $75 million will be spent to add distribution centres and $35 million will be spent on e-commerce initiatives, raising the total capital outlay to about $340 million.

The expansion will bring Walmart Canada’s store count to 396 by the end of January, 2016, consisting of 309 supercentres and 87 discount stores.

“Our mission is to provide multiple access points for customers to save money,” said Walmart Canada president and CEO Dirk Van den Berghe.

“We will deliver on this commitment through a range of channels including our expanding network of supercentres, our accelerating e-commerce business, and our in-store pick up services.”