Canadian Oil Sands

NDfootball06

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Apr 13, 2012
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96
Has anyone heard much about them? They're up in Alberta, Canada. Anyway, I heard tradesmen, or pretty much anyone that can put in a hard day's work, can make great money up there. One guy I talked to said he knows 18-20 year olds making 100-150k and still living at home

Apparently they need a lot of workers. I been pondering about this for awhile, and when asking some people I know they immediately turned down the idea because the oil sands were "bad for the environment".

Do you guys know anything about them? Does anyone know somebody who works up there? I hear it is a tough life style but the pay is worth it. The only downside is you may have to live in work camps. But I have heard "fly-in/fly-out" situations are quite common, and if you have the skills companies will fly you in from the US.
 
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Joined
Dec 7, 2011
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Calgary, Canada
I live in Toronto which is situated in the East of Canada, and is the largest city in Canada (5.5 million or so in the Greater Area known as the GTA). Alberta is situated in the West of the country, so its similar to comparing say New York City to Montana State, or something of that nature in terms of distance.

I have many friends who upon, graduating university in fields such as engineering, have moved to Alberta and are making amazing money (60 dollars an hour) at only 24 or 25 years old. I also have friends with no education, who worked up in Alberta in "hands on" work, or manual labour and they are also apparently making great money.

No question that Alberta is the wealthiest province in Canada, and I would think probably has the highest income per person in all of North America easily. Someone can go there, without education, and easily pocket like you say 100K per year doing manual work.

However, the downside as I have heard is that many people have been seriously injured, lost arms and legs, or have even been killed on the job. Obviously this is more specific to manual and roughneck work than other lines of work. Im not sure exactly why this happens, but I guess has something to do with the tools being used and such. Ive also heard the fumes you breathe in can be hazardous. The other downside is that you won't have any social life and you will live on a remote camp with other men. There won't be any women, bars, or entertainment.

I spoke with an Arab guy friend who told me that he made 100,000$ working one year in Alberta, but he also said that he was lucky to be alive. He also said to me that he wouldn't recommend it to others. If you're interested in working there, you need to weigh the risks compared to the money you will be receiving and it'd be best to do some research on the web as to the nature of workplace injuries there so that you can make an informed decision. Maybe it is a good idea for you to work up there, but at least be aware of the risks and know what you're getting into beforehand.

If you are a skilled tradesperson, I would think you might be slightly safer on the job, but once again I would do some research into that. And it is true what you say about tradespeople flying in and out.

Personally I have family working in Alberta, but they are doing office jobs in Calgary. Ive also been out to Calgary many times and its a nice, smaller sized city. Most jobs in Alberta are tied into the oil industry though.
 
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