Compare the UK trucking to Canadian..

[Dennisthemenace]

Do apologize, I've just opened another Canada topic, but the previous ones seems to me a bit "abandoned".

Just spend a short holiday in Cuba, where I met an ex pat trucker; he told me that, he would never do the UK trucking again, as he can afford a higher life standard there, while his job is more enjoyable. So, I'd like to ask guys, who moved to Canada from the UK about their opinions, making some comparisons between the every day life of the two countries.
I'd really appreciate some kind of information about the legal paperwork, and the first steps, like accommodation, driver licence issues, etc. Even about food, health care, other experiences, whatever.
I'm a British Citizen myself, 5 years experience (Class 1), clean licence, no criminal records
Thank you.

[russjp]

Wouldn't entertain moving back and driving for a living the traffic stress would kill me now

[Dennisthemenace]

Wouldn't entertain moving back and driving for a living the traffic stress would kill me now

Yeah, the traffic is a pain in the ass in the UK. And the [zb]' roadworks everywhere...

[russjp]

We've been here 3 years now and even with the decent jobs we had in England we couldn't afford half of what we have now

[Dennisthemenace]

We've been here 3 years now and even with the decent jobs we had in England we couldn't afford half of what we have now

That's actually everyone says...

russjp, if you have time, any time, pls give me some details (first steps over there, costs of every day life, etc.), would really apprecciate that.

[russjp]

Any advice you need can be found in this forum, it's not about money though that's the one mistake a lot of people make its about enhancing your life and that's not always a financial issue, I'm sure any of the expats on here will tell you the same if money is your motivation then you'll be unhappy trucking here

[Dennisthemenace]

No.. Not the money. I know, it sounds a bit childish, but a new challenge, new experiences are my motivation. Discovering something different, I know only from the telly.
I love driving, never ever been complaining about long shifts, etc. So I'm sure, I'd love that job, but have to think twice, before act, that's all.

[russjp]

If you're a single guy who likes a challenge then go for it, if you have a wife and kids then I'm not saying you shouldn't do it but be prepared to struggle for a couple of years while you get on your feet

[Dennisthemenace]

If you're a single guy who likes a challenge then go for it, if you have a wife and kids then I'm not saying you shouldn't do it but be prepared to struggle for a couple of years while you get on your feet

Married, two kids, but the elder one is 24 already, does not count as kid any more.
However, I never thought that, it's just a joyride. I will think about everything, before I make my decision.
Thank you for being realistic, hope, one day we will meet in a truckstop and have a coffee.

[JIMBO47]

never moved till awe was 48 ..wish tae hell I had done it earlier....arrived in 08 ye wouldny get me back tae the uk unless I was in a box!
drove a wagon frae 1981 so seen the good times in the uk and apart from bringing in the e logs in a couple o years time tae Canada ...use a paper log book at the moment things are good.
more autos coming intae use now but most are still 13sp/18 eaton fullers wae a few 10sp spicers around,the motors do the job but they aint no euro motor. the cvsa /dot are not in vosa league but there are some real truck haters in the ranks
At least for a Canadian firm you can visit the usa unload and then have to load back to Canada

[newmercman]

Sorry to sound pessimistic, but opportunities are thin on the ground here right now, you'll be extremely lucky to get a job offer and the associated paperwork required for a work permit. Now that isn't to say it's impossible, but it will be difficult.

Having said that, he who dares wins and all that, so assuming you get sorted in that respect, what's Canada like? That is really like asking how long is a piece of string, there are huge differences depending on where in the country you are, on the whole though it's a nice place to be, people are laid back and friendly for the most part.

The weather is mental, you have to experience the extremes to fully understand them, but temperatures jump between minus 40c in winter to plus 40c in summer. The amount of snow that comes down in a single storm would probably equal every bit of snow the average Brit has ever seen in their lifetime and once that storm finishes, another one hits a few days later, like I said, it's mental and if you venture into the USA you have tropical storms, hurricanes and tornadoes to add to the mix. They're not everyday occurrences, but be in the wrong place at the wrong time and it could get messy.

Living costs are dependant on w here you go, but you can get a much bigger place on lorry driver wages here than you can in Britain. The same goes for cars. Groceries are pretty expensive, but again, you can still live better than you could in Britain. Eating out is on par, but you really need to develop a love for plastic cheese as they like to put it on everything and the portion sizes are much bigger, so you get a lot of plastic cheese!

The job is harder, no doubt about that, you're away longer, you drive further, up to 700miles a day and you have the extreme conditions to endure, the roads are in a shocking state, if you ever drove in the commie bloc you will know what to expect over here. The truckstops have good facilities, except the plastic cheese mad restaurants! Free very good clean showers though.

The driving standards of fellow truck drivers is shocking, you will often shake your head and ask yourself WTF, the car drivers are even worse, but there is a lot of space out here, so unless you're in a big city, it's easy running, even a 700mile day can pass quickly and without incident.

One big factor that makes Canada very attractive at the moment is the exchange rate, it's almost two dollars to the pound at the moment, that is a very good deal if you have a chunk of change to bring over.

[robinhood_1984]

Its quite common for me to earn more on a good 4 day week, than it is on a regular 5 day week or even a 6 day. I'm probably in one of the best paying driving jobs in New Brunswick over all, especially when factoring in home time and over all treatment. My base rate is .43cpm with $20 for each pick and drop and $2.50 for every empty rack I bring back when delivering plants/flowers etc.
I do a mix of our own account plant (plant as in flowers) work and general freight so my weekly mileage varies a lot. One week I may only do 2000 miles, but do 20 or more picks and drops and with all the extras I'll take home in the bank in excess of $1000 for a 5 day week. Some weeks it could be in the 800s or 900s. Other weeks I'll be doing general freight and still be away 5 days, possibly 6 and I may do 3000 - 3700 miles but only do 2 picks and drops. Recently I banked $1150 for six days out. However I also have shockingly bad weeks where I'll take home a lot less. Due to my relatively high mileage rate I'm usually in the $700+ per week take home even on a bad week, though recently I did have one at about $650.
Due to the nature of my job and that for about 6 months of the year when added together, I'm doing our own plant deliveries which tend to be in New England I do less mileage than most drivers in Canada who are considered long haul. Last year I did something like 104,000 miles and grossed $150 short of $60k. When my gross wage is divided by my miles for the year my mileage rate then worked out at .57.6cpm with all the add ons etc. I also get 5 additional paid bank holidays per year above and beyond the legal requirement.

My experiences and the way I'm treated in this job are unfortunately not the industry standard though, especially for New Brunswick and probably for Canada as a whole. I have plenty of friends working for long haul firms, firms which are usually pretty decent outfits (for earnings at least) but due to the economic climate at the moment with the exchange rate the way it is with the US dollar and the resulting consequences for US exports to Canada being in shorter supply, they often sit for days at a time on no pay at all.
I do miss the long haul trips and the like but at the moment I'm working Monday to Friday 95% of the time with Saturday and Sundays at home and I'm earning more money than many of my mates who are subject to the volatile nature of mileage only pay for a Canadian general freight long haul firm. A few weeks back I finished one of my multi-drop plant runs in Ohio, they looked for a reload for a few hours, couldn't find anything so brought be all the way back to New Brunswick empty to be in place for the next week's run. Any of the previous firms I'd worked for would have sat my there for days without batting an eyelid.

I think its far easier to find a good job in the UK you can be comfortable in and settle down because wages don't differ so drastically from day to day and week to week as an employed driver in the UK. Here they do but a family man obviously has constant outgoings so life with one of the bottom dwelling cock roach firms will be a roller coaster ride of financial stress and woe at the best of times unless you've sold a house in the UK you owned and come across with so much money you don't mind bumming around, which to be fair is quite common with many Brits here. Much more difficult if you're coming across with very little money and a family to support from the word go and start out with a feast and famine firm, with a heavy bias towards famine.

In the UK you can be the worst driver in the world and all you have to do is merely turn up for work and do a bit and you'll be getting your guaranteed hourly rate or day rate, the same as the man next to you, regardless of how much you've done or he's done. Here you'll be working a damn sight harder and longer but if all things line up you'll eventually have a batter quality of life here, or you'll at least have more things, bigger hours etc. Quality of life will depend on each individual and what they want out of life, Canada isn't for everyone, nor is Britain etc.

As NMM says, it'll be harder now because LMIAs are not being thrown around like snow balls like they were when most of us came across so its not possible to pick and choose firms in the way it once was. I came across 7 years ago as a single 25 year old with no ties so I had nothing to lose by giving it a go and seeing how it went. I'm now married to a Canadian with a 9 month old baby and despite saving a shed load of money here in my first two years when I lived a grim life in the cab of a truck and last year bringing over a considerable amount from the UK at the very advantageous exchange rate, life isn't easy, I earn very well for this part of Canada but we're only living off my wage at the moment due to the baby and its bloody hard making any head way at all and the thought of having these sorts of expenses as a new arrival in Canada, earning the sort of money I did in my first few jobs makes me shudder. I'm pretty tight compared to most, I don't like spending money on myself on any thing, I've never bought anything extravagant in Canada since being here. I'm a saving today and planning for the future type of guy, and even then its hard. In light of that, its no wonder I've seen so many Brits come over and head back practically bankrupt within a year or two because most of them come here on a dizzy high and splurge out on all sorts of toys, cars, houses etc and then later find they can't afford it and start to slowly sink week by week as the wages don't match the out goings or they have one great week of mileage or two crap ones but still can't keep that boat afloat.

So to sum up my opinion after all this rambling, it would be that if back in 2009 I had a wife and a baby and was thinking of starting from scratch in Canada, I wouldn't bother because I doubt I could afford to do so. If I were older and had a paid for house in the UK I could sell and then convert that huge amount of money in to Canadian dollars, then yes, might as well and if you're a single chap looking for a bit of an adventure, which was my case back then, then why not, give it a shot if you can get an LMIA.
Its taken me a long time to get to where I am in Canada now and I've only being able to do so because for much of it I only had to provide for myself. Had I had a wife and child from the start, I can't see how I'd possibly have survived those first few dark years in anything other than dank squalor in a shanty house in town which would have been so far below my standard of living in England, I'd never have bothered. Those that come here with money from a house sale in the UK definitely have a huge advantage here.

I like my life in Canada now on the most part and I'm almost certainly here for good now due to my ties here, but if my wife were interested in ever moving to England, I would give it very strong consideration at the very least. I think I like living here more, but I do feel burnt out from the job of endlessly having to chase the mile to bank the dollar. If I did ever move back to England I think it would mainly be for the work and the more predictable wage, which is something I do crave a lot.

[neilg14]

I came here in '07' and very thankful I did then, when jobs (LMO's & TWP's) were plentiful.
Before that, I lived month to month in the UK and had nothing because of previous circumstances beyond my control.
I couldn't get ahead at all and when the opportunity to come over here to work, I grabbed it.
I spent 3 1/2yrs living in the truck, got married my first year here, got me and wife's PR and wife moved here and am now a Citizen.
We had 2 houses built in Thailand and are buying a decent sized house here and a newish car in the garage.
I still live mth to mth but have a hell of a lot more now than I ever did.
I now do a local run, mon-fri, 4 times 108km round trip loads, of water into a bottling plant, a day, anywhere between 11- 14 hrs & home every night.
I get a good hourly rate and time & 1/2 over 8hrs & gross $1600+/week.
I hated mileage pay with bonuses for this and that, never new what I was going to make week to week.
The way things stand over here now, in regards to LMIA's & TWP's, if you have a half decent job in the UK, I would stick to it and maybe in the not too distant future, with this new Govt, things could change again.
Take in what has been said by NMM & Robinhood above about moving here with family.
Anyone alone, get's a chance, I would say go for it.

[Big Truck]

Excellent posts there guys VERY interesting
reading!!!!!!

[MGR1610]

Rather than start another Canada thread I'll ask here, if you find a company employing that have lmia's do they have people that will help you sort everything out to get out there and get the licence or do they basically say sort x y and z out yourself and be in the yard on this date to start?

I spent 3 1/2yrs living in the truck,

What did you do for an address for the time you where living in the truck?

[robinhood_1984]

Rather than start another Canada thread I'll ask here, if you find a company employing that have lmia's do they have people that will help you sort everything out to get out there and get the licence or do they basically say sort x y and z out yourself and be in the yard on this date to start?


What did you do for an address for the time you where living in the truck?

It all depends on the company. Some do it all for you, some point you in the right direction to do most of it yourself and others want you to do everything and come back once its done.

The company I came across with charged us something like $3000 each and for that we got accommodation provided and unlimited use of a truck and trailer to practice on for the test, plus they paid for all the tests etc. They also let us use the workshop pickup to get around in without restriction. This worked great for me as I came across alone as a bit of an adventure and didn't want to outlay even more money on an apartment, furniture, a car etc until I knew if I was going to stay or not, so whilst the initial fee they charged seemed a bit steep, it was cheaper than it would otherwise have cost me to do it all independently, especially if you factor in paying a driving school to get you through the test etc, which would be several hundred if not a thousand or so in itself.

I also lived in my truck for the best part of two years and I used the companies address, so all my mail just got put in my drivers box. Some companies don't let you do this, some do.

[MGR1610]

Rather than start another Canada thread I'll ask here, if you find a company employing that have lmia's do they have people that will help you sort everything out to get out there and get the licence or do they basically say sort x y and z out yourself and be in the yard on this date to start?


What did you do for an address for the time you where living in the truck?

It all depends on the company. Some do it all for you, some point you in the right direction to do most of it yourself and others want you to do everything and come back once its done.

The company I came across with charged us something like $3000 each and for that we got accommodation provided and unlimited use of a truck and trailer to practice on for the test, plus they paid for all the tests etc. They also let us use the workshop pickup to get around in without restriction. This worked great for me as I came across alone as a bit of an adventure and didn't want to outlay even more money on an apartment, furniture, a car etc until I knew if I was going to stay or not, so whilst the initial fee they charged seemed a bit steep, it was cheaper than it would otherwise have cost me to do it all independently, especially if you factor in paying a driving school to get you through the test etc, which would be several hundred if not a thousand or so in itself.

I also lived in my truck for the best part of two years and I used the companies address, so all my mail just got put in my drivers box. Some companies don't let you do this, some do.

Something like that would be ideal for me because I would be coming over alone aswell and spending $3000 is nothing really compared to what your getting and will be saving if you live in the truck. I'm not 25 for another 2 years so hopefully by then more company's will be employing with lmia's.

What's the test like aswell please?

[JIMBO47]

the test POP to be honest.......multi choice class1 and air brake. for learners licence. On the test day ,a pre trip inspection, a practical air brake test (you could learn both parrot fashion) then if you have passed the previous a straight reverse into a bay then a 20ish drive a couple o left /turns right turns a traffic light or two then back to test centre . used to be able to do a brake adjustment exam but that's now gone. NB this is for Manitoba.

[JIMBO47]

look at mpi.mb.driver quizzes for an idea on things.

[russjp]

the test POP to be honest.......multi choice class1 and air brake. for learners licence. On the test day ,a pre trip inspection, a practical air brake test (you could learn both parrot fashion) then if you have passed the previous a straight reverse into a bay then a 20ish drive a couple o left /turns right turns a traffic light or two then back to test centre . used to be able to do a brake adjustment exam but that's now gone. NB this is for Manitoba.

Reverse into a bay ? Jeez you had it tough we had to turn left out out a junction reverse straight back and turn left into the street we came out of !! Test is a joke

[JIMBO47]

lol ,,the reverse box even had lines on it and a circle/cross on when to stop next to the cab .

[neilg14]

Rather than start another Canada thread I'll ask here, if you find a company employing that have lmia's do they have people that will help you sort everything out to get out there and get the licence or do they basically say sort x y and z out yourself and be in the yard on this date to start?

I spent 3 1/2yrs living in the truck,

What did you do for an address for the time you where living in the truck?

I used the company address, we had pigeon holes for our post.

[newmercman]

A lot of people have a PO box as their address, out in the boonies there is no door to door postal service and you can rent a PO box from Canada Post or UPS. Not sure if you can have that as the address on your license though?

The test itself is mainly the pre trip and air brake stuff, as Jimmy said, just learn it parrot fashion and it's easy, the driving part is ridiculously easy, but many a driver with 20+yrs on artics in Britain has still managed to fail it, some more than once! Bad habits I guess, but for the record I passed first time, despite the bad habits lol

[JIMBO47]

bad man NMM ..yes I failed on a Tuesday on the drive for gods sake!27yrs bad habits passed the drive next day with a very unhappy instructor (seems I cost him money due to me not passing first time) lol. didn't have to do the airbrake as passed on Tuesday.

[MGR1610]

I will only have 5 years bad habits by the time I'm eligible to go out there so hopefully ill be able to kick them easy enough haha, test doesn't sound bad at all really just get use to sitting on the wrong side. It's good that you can use the company's address tho because I wouldent be too keen on getting a house out there straight off the bat because you don't know if they'll let you stay.

[newmercman]

I think the best way to do things out here is first come over for a visit, just have a look around, if you have a family, do it together. Do not mention to airport immigration that you're looking to come here for work as they can [zb] you off and send you home.

Once you've had a little jolly up out here then you can start to concentrate on the companies offering work in a province you liked. Then assuming you get the magic job offer and LMIA, come over alone and get all the tests done and get out on the road.

Stay in the truck as much as possible, ideally working your nuts off and get nominated for PR by the company or province (depending on how it's done in the province you are in) and then think about renting somewhere and bringing the family over.

Remember that all this can take up to two years and it could be a further two years before you get residency. You may not be at a very good company (highly likely) and you can moan all you want about that, but because options are so limited at the moment and the system has been abused so much in the past, you have no choice but to suck it up buttercup. No matter how bad it gets, you're pretty much stuck where you are and there's nothing you can do about it, except pack it all up and go back to Britain. It's not good, but it is how it is.

I'm not over dramatising it, there really are some terrible jobs over here and the worst of the worst are the companies that have to recruit from overseas, as even the Canadian drivers, who take far more crap than Brits, will not work for these firms.

They aren't all bad, but most of them are, which is why 99% of Brits that came here no longer work for the company they came here to work for. Do not be under any illusions that it will be different for you, many people have made that mistake and a lot of them are now back in Britain with a very bad taste in their mouths.

I have been speaking to a recent arrival in the past few weeks and even I was shocked by the exploitation he and his family are enduring. His pay is almost half of what the Canadian drivers earn for doing the same job, he rented a house off the owner of the company and the rent keeps going up, he pays from his wages, so has no choice but to pay, he looked for another place to live and the boss found out and threatened to throw his family out on the street while he was out on the road unless he stayed in the company house. If he attempts to refuse an unreasonable request he is told to get his family out of the house and go to the airport and back to Britain.

The poor bloke is at the end of his rope, so I advised him to adopt a different approach, one that is a bit more British in its approach. There's a lot of illegal stuff going on, the wages, the house rental etc etc, so pointing out that the authorities would shut the firm down (more than half the workforce is on an LMIA and if they get pulled, it will be a big problem) and that an extreme level of violence will be dished out the next time threats are made to his family.

Not a good situation at all and one of the most extreme cases I've heard of, but it's happening for this poor bloke and his family, so even though such a bad deal is unlikely to happen to anybody else, it does show how bad it could be out here if you make the wrong choice I'm who you take that LMIA from...

[Dennisthemenace]

Gentlemen, first, I do apologize as I left this topic abandoned for such a long time. I had family issues to sort out....

Thank you for the opinions, guys, I really appreciate your help.
So, I contacted the Bison Transport in Winnipeg, they even sent me the application forms, and there's a fella from my country who works for them, and give me infos about the company and about Manitoba. Meantime, I met another fella, who lived in Prince Edward island for a year and had a very negative opinion about the job and the island itself.. But he gave me the name of the company and I talked guys, who still work there, their opinion is much more positive. LAst Saturday I went to London, there was an event in the Canada House; three provinces, East Brunswick, Nova Scotia and PEI sent representatives to recruit people, who wanna move there. And that haulage company sent his recruitment manager too. So, I got all the infos I need to sort out the immigration paperwork and apply for a job. Did not make a decision, should I go for the Bison, or the company at PEI.. The property prices are more friendly at PEI, and the weather bit more friendly. Another thing, the training at the Bison is 13 weeks, at the other company said 4-6 weeks.
Anyway, if any one works for either the Bison, Bulk Carriers, or another New Brunswick/Nova Scotia based company, please, feel free, to make any opinion, suggestion, or give some more details, even their own experiences...
Every opinion, advice much appreciated, about rent, buying my first car, health insurance, etc.
Have a nice weekend everyone.

[neilg14]

Hey, if this is the only choice you have, then I would go with Bison, I don't know much about the companies over East, only what I read and that it was bad for the majority of drivers.
Scroll up again to Robinhoods posts above, re-read them and digest it.
Again, no experience with them but Bison, if they can keep you running, would probably be your best bet.
This 13 weeks training, what does it entail, did they tell you ?
What are they paying you for this ?
IMO, personally speaking and knowing what I do now, I would give all of these a wide berth and see what happens in the next 12mths or so with LMIA's.
One rash/wrong decision now because you feel you need to be out like yesterday, could possibly ruin your life forever, whereas waiting a while and making the right decision could make your life unbelievably great.

[JIMBO47]

BISON all the way if that s all the choices ye have....yes.you are just a number but its all legal but the pay is in the bank iirc weekly and there are many shifts you can do but at the start you would be Canada -USA -Canada,(going by what friends tell me and they have no reason to lie to me).allocated truck BUT if you want to take say a week off then don't expect it waiting on you as it will be used.

[newmercman]

Look closely at life outside the truck, the prairies are a challenging place to live. You're either swatting mozzies or shoveling snow