Moving to...

mattrgee

Hi everyone,

I'm thinking that 2009 could be the year that I leave the UK and work abroad either permanently or for a fixed period of time. The countries I'm considering are: China, Canada and the US. For anyone who lives in these countries could you tell me what the IT job market is at the moment and how this applies to migrant workers? Any tips for searching for positions and getting a job offer would also be appreciated.

Thanks.

GT-Rob

I remember a couple of threads already on this, especially for Canada. But in general, the market depends on where you end up in the country. Hiring agencies are always good for finding work as well

gorebrush

I've been toying with this idea too...

skrpune

Things aren't so good just about anywhere in any field in the US, and Canada's not too far behind. I feel bad for Canada sometimes - it's a great country, but it gets sucked down whenever the US goes down because it's dependent a lot of US business/travel/etc. I don't know the details but there was a recent stimulus package implemented in Canada not too long after the US bailouts started, and the prime minister basically told parliament to go on vacation so they couldn't vote him out. (I do so love the Canadian political/govt system, any govt that allows its members to scream and curse at each other in their equivalent of congress is right by me...but can anyone imagine something like the pres shutting down the congress/senate happening in the US?! ) So there's some "flux" to say the least going on in Canada, but it's a big ol' country and there are still a lot of places where growth is continuing and jobs are still needed - Ontario's probably out of the question, but if you go to the west end you're more likely to find greater job availability.

As for the US, I can't offer any one area/region that's still experiencing growth, besides the foreclosure market. Seriously - it's a big business. If you can somehow work your way into servicing the foreclosure industry, then you're likely set for the next couple of years. I had to get out of it several years ago (it just felt smarmy to me to be working for a company that profited off the loss of others), but if you can stomach it, it's a good market right now.

GT-Rob

On the note of politics here, I was watching the daily show the other night and it went something like:

"the canadian parliament is trying to pass a no-confident vote to kick out the prime minister...... You can do that?! 'Cause we have lost confidence in ours a lonnnnng time ago!"



Canada does rely on the US economy, but so does most of the world. We probably get hit with as much as the UK does.

1 major thing to watch, and I don't think enough people are paying attention to, is that in Alberta, the corner stone of the economy here is oil. However, its dirty, and expensive oil. Meaning it costs about $35/barrel just to take it out of the ground. Guess what happens when oil drops below that, and it costs more to produce than to sell.