So we want to move back east. We love it there – the people, the landscape, the way of life.
We see a handful of jobs in our fields, realizing that due to the smaller population, professional positions are not as frequent as more populated areas of the country. We know it will be a bit of a hunt to find a job opportunity that is right.
We inquire about the pay for these jobs, knowing that we are going to take a pay cut, of course – the houses are cheaper there, few other things are cheaper, but its an acceptable trade off for us.
However, the fact that jobs there that require masters degrees and higher pay under $37,000 is atrocious. It is the one and only factor that will keep us and our tax dollars from the east coast. And its not just private industry, professional government jobs, Lawyers, Accountants, Management jobs requiring decades of experience, paying low 40’s. What an insult. No wonder the governments of the Atlantic Provinces are in shambles – no one in their right mind would work for them at these rates of pay. So you get unqualified, inexperienced people running the civil service, under the direction of inexperienced politicians who –with the support of experienced people might stand a chance of running the place properly – run the place into the ground. You simply won’t and can’t win.
So until you start making the place an attractive option for experienced professionals who want to go there but simply can’t afford to live off your pennies a day, you will continue to follow this vicious cycle of failed governments and brain drain.—Stuck
This article appears in Apr 22-28, 2010.
o.p., take my advice, and stay the hell where you are at. this orovince has been going downhill so fast, in the last 5 years, it would make your head spn. stay where you are, you will be better off than here.
Hear Hear! This is why in all ads you will not see the salary, they will simply say “competitive compensation” or something like that. Who in their right mind expected to be in the low 30’s after going to school 7-8 years, paying who knows how much?
yep… sounds about right… and truth be told, cost of living isn’t very much less at all.
Everything is more fucking expensive since they have to truck all that shit out here.
taxes rising all the god damn time in every way.
power always coming up with the next excuse to jack the rates…
it’s not an ‘ideal’ situation by any means. You really have to love it here to want to live here. Hell, why do you think we were so happy to see Kay take her crusty twat west?
I want to return home to Halifax. If there’s a job opening, I know that I will have to take a significant salary cut. My last check placed the salary cut at about 50%, though I’ve seen wages as low as near minimum wage level … for Master’s level education and ten years professional experience!
The cost of living is not lower in NS. In fact, gas and food is more expensive. I can actually buy a greater variety of fresh fish in downtown Toronto for a lower cost than in Halifax. I can get four litres of 2% milk for $3.95. Housing prices are racing up to Toronto levels.
The healthcare system is an underfunded joke, too. It’s shameful, actually. I didn’t realise how bad the NS healthcare sytem is until I experienced healthcare in another province.
Then, there’s the underfunded primary education system….
Then, there’s the way Halifax is being driven down the drain by an incompetant city council, and a provincial government that is little different from that of the ‘glory days’ of John Buchanan.
And kids, exhibiting the stressors of living in an economically depressed community, following the examples of those in positions of political authority, albeit in that dumbass kiddy way … bang, bang, shoot, shoot, gimme your money.
I still want to return home, though. Home is home. I’ll bring my skills and experiences gathered while traveling back to my community. I just can’t find a job that will put a roof over my family and food in our bellies.
This rant has little to no basis in reality as far as I’m concerned. I’m 25, I recently graduated with my Masters and accepted a job in N.S. where the salary range begins at 68,000. By the time I’m in my late 30s/40s I’ll most likely be earning 6 figures in this field. My friends around my age who are recent graduates who work in banks, for the government, private sector, etc. in NS all earn at least 40,000 a year. The only university graduates I know who earn less than that are ones who accepted some call center type job after graduating, rather than look around for other options, or ones who were aware that in their chosen field they probably wouldn’t make very much starting out.
If a person is adequately educated/trained for your chosen field and you’re not able to find a job that pays more than “37k,” the salary that was mentioned, either you’re not looking hard enough, your work experience/skills/education makes you less qualified than you think you are, or you’re in the wrong field.
I’m not sure what kind of “professional government jobs, Lawyers, Accountants, Management” you’ve heard of who have “decades of experience” and earn 40k. I have never heard of this, unless the “professional governmental jobs” you mean include part-time receptionists working in a municipal office in somewhere like Mabou, or when you say “accountant” you’re referring to a clerk who works at Money Mart.
engineering
4 years
avg 45k starting
What a load of bull OP. I have no masters degree and I am in a professional position and earn 72,000.00/year. You are not looking in the right places. Perhaps it is best you stay where you are.
Wow, OP – you’re really high on yourself, aren’t you?
Some people live on the East Coast because they really do appreciate the lifestyle. It is a choice they make and they do not simply pay lipservice to the concept of living here.
I, like so many other people that live here, accept that there is some bad that comes with the overwhelming good of living in Nova Scotia – just as I am sure there are ups and downs to living in any other part of the country. I fortunately have a wonderful job with an *incredibly* generous salary, so I cannot even relate to your particular bitch.
You started your bitch with this statement: “We love it there – the people, the landscape, the way of life.”
Perhaps you were a bit too liberal in your early praise because it is clear you love neither the people nor the way of life. I invite you to keep your experienced personage in upper Canada – that way *I* can still like the people here in Nova Scotia.