WESTCAN

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS EX-PAT BRITISH TRUCKERS (INTERACTIVE)
1

Hi Folks

Been thinking of making the move across the pond for a good few years now, however I have had a health issue to sort out that has made me hold back, I am pretty much sorted with it now, and ready to start the ball rolling again.

So does anyone have any recent experiences with Westcan, ie in the last 12 months■■?

I know they have had some bad press in the past, as have many of the other firms over there, I know there are firms over there who treat drivers like ■■■■, and I also know there are a few select tossers on here who like to put people off the idea of people moving on and succeeding with the big leap.
I am also aware that there are some whining screwdrivers who have gone over there and given us a bad name !!
( been following these forums on and off for about 6 years now)

So if your name is Robbbbiiieeeeee, or you are in the same club dont even bother replying to this.

What Im looking for is:

Experiences of Drivers who are working there either now or have done in the past 12 months ?

What are the wages like, ie hourly pay or mileage ?

What are the planners like, do you get on with them, and are you treated fairly ?

What shifts do you work and how often do you get home ?

Which is the best Terminal to work out of ?

What are the motors like, are they well maintained, decent spec ?

Sorry for all the questions but am ready to make the move now and ready to get the ball rolling.

I am wanting to know what they are like NOW, not 3,4 or 5 years ago.

You can inbox me if you dont want your opinions to be made public

Thanks in advance chaps any help will be much appreciated and any private messages will remain so.

Regards, Jimbo

2

http://www.thelongroad-mark-louise.blogspot.com is a blog from a brit working for Westcan. I follow it and it is good. Maybe you could get in touch by leaving a comment on the blog.
Hope this helps.

3

RICO:
http://www.thelongroad-mark-louise.blogspot.com is a blog from a brit working for Westcan. I follow it and it is good. Maybe you could get in touch by leaving a comment on the blog.
Hope this helps.

Thanks for that Rico, Al have a gander.

4

I have no personal experience, but have heard good and bad about them, one man’s meat is another man’s poison :wink:

One thing that I do know (well I’ve read it on other forums) is that Alberta is very difficult when it comes to getting PR, it takes much longer than in the other provinces and if you want to move companies before you get PR it’s next to impossible, I know that WestCan have terminals in other provinces, it may be wise to do your homework on that one :wink:

5

newmercman:
I have no personal experience, but have heard good and bad about them, one man’s meat is another man’s poison :wink:

One thing that I do know (well I’ve read it on other forums) is that Alberta is very difficult when it comes to getting PR, it takes much longer than in the other provinces and if you want to move companies before you get PR it’s next to impossible, I know that WestCan have terminals in other provinces, it may be wise to do your homework on that one :wink:

Cheers for that NMM, something to bear in mind.

Jimbo.

6

newmercman:
I have no personal experience, but have heard good and bad about them, one man’s meat is another man’s poison :wink:

One thing that I do know (well I’ve read it on other forums) is that Alberta is very difficult when it comes to getting PR, it takes much longer than in the other provinces and if you want to move companies before you get PR it’s next to impossible, I know that WestCan have terminals in other provinces, it may be wise to do your homework on that one :wink:

I’m a bit late seeing this thread, but WestCans latest adverts here (UK) for drivers, or at least those by their recruiting company, specifically say no PR, just a two year fixed term contract on a two year sponsored work visa. This would seem to tie in with NMMs comments about Alberta.

7

Where would you stand after two years would you be able to get residency/citezenship

8

kr79:
Where would you stand after two years would you be able to get residency/citezenship

In a queue at the airport :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

9

jonny2jags:

kr79:
Where would you stand after two years would you be able to get residency/citezenship

In a queue at the airport :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

:laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

10

To the point :smiley:

11

Hi most of my mates work in canada, some went to westcan, i did. i went there met them etc. westcan cash is poor but all my mates have moved onto other things in canada and i can tell you there doing just fine if not great. im me if you want further infoo or i can get my mates to e-mail you from canada

12

BEFORE committing solely to Alberta read the whole of this thread here:
britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=719371 :wink:

13

Hi, I cant answer for Westcan never had any dealings with them. But to answer a couple of your questions.
(Can you get PR after 2 years) I managed to get a PR card with no aid from expencife lawers & the one visit back in 2002. It then took 2 years to obtain the Permanant residence Visa. The aplication has to come from the home country. I worked in Iraq while i was waiting for the procces to compleat, it was frustrating as I did not know how long it would take. I am not sure if you can work on a temp visa while your aplication for PR is in process, but i think you can. So a visit to Canada will do 2 things, it will give you an opertunity to visit some of the companys that do hire Brit drivers but also go to other companys & ask for there suport in your aplication, all you want is a letter stating that they would consider you as & when you obtain a PR card. The company can not be held to provide a job once you do get the PR card but then with a PR card thewhole of Canada is open to you not just the province that brought you in. Try Challenger freight. You get points for just visiting cannada, & you need a job offer to go forward with a PR aplication. (My cousin whent with Yanky trucking a year later on a 12 month work visa, it cost him thousands to get his PR card as he has a family,) Watch out for the what those companys that regularly bring in drivers as they also have a share of the expencife lawer costs, so they will try & convince you that its too complicated to handle on your own, BS, any body that took the 11 plus can do it.
Secondly, wages, Challenger run over 2000 trucks & have depots in all provinces, HQ in Kitchiner ONT & major depot in Vancouver BC. rate is $17.50 an hour on city work or 35cnt a mile on open road as a solo driver, Team rate is a little more but persanoly I prefer driving as a solo. I avareged 17’000 km per 20 days on the road. That worked out at between $3500 & $4000 per month take home. For that i stated i will work 30 days, so with 4 36 hour breaks & the days waiting for a reload on ocasions i ran 20 to 23 days in a month. Now to be honest I got really ■■■■■■ off when you get offerd a load , Ex- Toronto to LA, a good run. then when you get to Toronto you find they gave that load to a team that havent even arrived there yet, so as a solo driver you will be wipeing the arse of team drivers. I stated when i want to be home , giving them 30 days notice & they still route me the wrong side of the country, you are not high on there list of getting you to where you want to be , but they do expect you to be where they want you on time. To be expected but still gets my goat. Anyway to be honest I was only filling in for a few months whilst waiting to go back overseas. As an owner driver I found that Many Canadian businesses will not generally give you the steam of there S*** let alone a good paying load. It took me a long time of frustrating door knocking to get just 3 semi regular loads to Alberta at a price that would cover a round trip. ( But then i do live on an Island) & I started just as everything went ■■■■ up in 2008. Also it would have been easy to just sighn on with a big company as an Owner Operator but i prefer to be my own master and beholden to nobody. So I went the route of having my own Canadian Operating Authority & US DOT number. as a Incorporated limited company. The Banks really screwed me up and I have had to park my truck & get back over seas to earn some good money before steping back into the shark pond.
By the way the rate in BC is around $20 an hour but harder to get in. But as i said once you get a PR card you can work & live any place you want. What I would suggest is look up the Provicial Nominee Programe web site. www.BC.PNP.GOV.CA do not be fooled by web sites that look like official sites, they often have a quick quize to see if you will get aproval. They are not Government web sites. allways check the Header for the letters GOV in any web name. Truck driver is in the list of ocupations in demand for BC.
Another thing to remember is that House prices are cheap in the plains in general, with BC and Vancouver Island being more on a par with the UK, so if in 10 years time you think of returning to the UK guess what, the house in rural manitoba is worth a garden shed in Essex or a small ex council house on a rough estate some where else so if your selling up in the UK invest it in some thing that will be on a par as security.
Well just some of my experiances for what there worth.