My Last Day Working As An Operator in Canada

Author: Net Alagnam

As my eldest son tapped me gently saying, 

"Mommy, it's time to wake up! Come on, let's go!"

I got up brushed my teeth, washed my face, wore my sweater, and looked for my keys in the bag. Back home, I don't go out without taking a bath and put some powder and lipstick on my face.

But here in Canada, everything is different. I'm not that conscious of my physical appearance especially if the place we're going to is just 3 floors below our unit.

As I went to our sala, I noticed that my youngest son is already watching his favorite episodes in YouTube. I told him to get his slippers for we will send kuya to ate Ana's unit for the last time.

Since today is my last day of work in Citamit, it is also my eldest son's (Sam) last day of letting someone (ate Ana) send him off to school. The following week, the three of us (Me and my two kids) will be going to school just across our building to drop him off. At least I'll be 15 dollars a week richer :D

As we went back to our unit, I started cooking food for my friends/co-workers for my "farewell blowout". I began working with the pork belly that I marinated already and shove it into the oven.

Next I cooked noodles for my spaghetti. By the way, I missed the ingredients I've had back home. My spaghetti won't be the same because of some lacking "secret ingredients".

But before making the sauce, I took a bath first so that my hair can dry itself while I'm finishing my dishes. 

After making the spaghetti sauce, I started placing them in containers. I also included garlic bread to go with the spaghetti. Adding disposable plates and some spoon and forks, my bag is ready to go.

My Last Day At Citamit...

As I stepped down the vehicle of my carpool, I removed my phone from my pocket and I took a picture of the building of Citamit. I sighed as I enter the door saying to myself,

" This is it! My last day in this company.."

As I go to the lunchroom where all of the workers (afternoon shift) stayed while waiting for our turn, I sat across a friend who greeted me saying, 

"This is your last day right?", I nodded.

"Do you really have to go?"

"Yeah. I have to... no one will take care of the kids if my husband will go out of town..."

"You'll come back right?"

"Maybe after a few years. My kids can't be left at home till Sam is 12 years old... and his only 10 now..."

Then the bell rang. Time for us to go downstairs for work. As we go down, I saw our supervisor giving us our assignments. As I passed by him, he said, "aisle 2".

Looking at my machine located in aisle 2, its lights closed. It made me think that we will not be making the new pack (approximately 15 lbs per part)... which means I will be transferred to another working station. This is what I've noticed, that whenever we make an old pack (where the parts are lighter), they transfer me somewhere...

True enough, I saw Mat coming towards me and said,

"Net, did I say aisle 2? I mean aisle 4, you go there now."

I bid farewell to my co-workers and went to my new assignment. Seeing the team leader of aisle 4, Kiko,  he told me to put bushing on some parts. Talk about having the easiest job on your last day. :D 

Then few minutes came, 3 of my friends (all Filipina) came working with me. I said to myself,

"Wow, this is getting better! As if they are giving me special treatment! How I wish they've done this earlier. :D"

My Last Breaktime With Friends/Co-workers...

 

The first break came then we ate the spaghetti I made as fast as we could for our break time is only good for 10 minutes. Our friend Lemak came and treated us with a  container of Tim Horton that has the capacity of more than 10 cups.

Then the second break came where we can eat for 20 minutes. We usually eat together sharing our meals with one another. So I brought out my version of "Lechon" (roasted pork) and they loved it.

After dinner, Kiko told me,

"Take it easy, make chitchat with your friends..."

"I will!"


But deep in my mind, I can't do that because the company is paying me for every hour I work so it will be unfair if I'll be chatting for hours while waiting for the bell to ring. Besides, I can do quick chats while working :)

 
My Last Minutes Of Work

So 11 pm came that marked the first bell, meaning we need to wait for another 10 minutes before we could go up to the lunchroom. While waiting for the 2nd bell, I went to aisle 2 to bid farewell to the people I've grown fond of for the past 2 months.

Second bell rang, I went up to timed out for the last time and went back to the office of the supervisor to return the key ID. I also passed by Mat and told him that I returned already the ID. I don't want to have a bad reputation so that I could come back easily if ever.

As I went to the lunchroom, I met some friends and exchanged hugs for one last time before going out to meet my ride. We also exchanged phone numbers and facebook account just in case we'll be missing each other and just want to hang out. :)

Though I've worked with this company for only 2 months, I made a lot of friends not only Filipino/Filipina but of different races as well. I learned some of their culture - Vietnamese, Chinese, African, Indian, Jamaican and a lot more. That even we were of different races, we accepted and respected each others beliefs as long as it won't hinder our work.


If you have questions about my post, please email me at netalagnam@gmail.com. 

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Consequences of Being an OFW and FSW: Is it Better or Worse?

Every two months, as a foreign worker in Singapore,  I made sure to have a quick vacation in the Philippines.  It's a quick one because I only stayed there for 4 to 5 days.

The good thing about my job in Singapore was the flexibility of my time.  Filing a leave was never been a problem 'cause each one has already been planned 6 months ahead of time.  So, I made sure that my leave of absence were filed 3 months before my next Philippine visit.

Everytime I reached the NAIA Terminals, my two boys were there to greet me all the time.  They're so excited from the moment they see me from the glass-covered waiting areas.  They'll be jumping for joy.

As I move closer to them, two sets of small arms, widely spread, reaches up towards me, with their small cute lips touching my cheeks.   The loneliness and depression that I got from Singapore vanishes as their soft baby cheeks touches my lips.

I am not alone... many of my fellow Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) Fathers are experiencing this burden, I'm sure.  This is true specially when a father and his child had a great relationship before the separation.

Effects of Being an OFW on My 10-Year Old
My toddler, now 10, was very close to me when I was working in the Philippines.  I always cry secretly when I remember our playful times together inside our house.

He always sings in front of many people.  My wife and I also made sure that he speaks with other people with confidence.

I left him when he was a confident little boy.  My excitement working in Singapore had isolated my thinking about the future effect of it on him.

Skype or Facebook were our ways of communication. He was typing odd words and jumbled letters at the message window back then, until the time that he can create full sentences.  That's how time flies.

We had video chats, almost everyday, but the loneliness deep inside was there all the time.   It'll get worse when we say our goodbyes.

Years passed by until I learned that he was no longer singing in front of people and was so shy speaking to someone.  His voice was getting unconfident, dragging his self-esteem down.

His teacher explained to my wife that he is experiencing a "separation anxiety".  This is the effect when two closely related individuals separate from each other.

My son is not the only one with this type of issues, this is common on children that are away from their father or mother for quite a long time.

Separated From my Baby Boy
During my stay in Singapore, my wife and my 10-year old visits me every summer.  It's one of  my happiest moments in the Lion City.  We've visited a lot of places and food centres in every corner of the country.

This is also the time when we decided to add a new member of the family.  A new baby boy was made in Singapore and born in Philippines. :D

Back then, with the same setup, I thought that it won't have any effect on my little boy as he was born  without me.  He will have no separation anxiety and he will get used to it sooner.

As usual, my frequent visit in Philippines gives me a chance to carry my baby boy and kiss him anytime I want.

I remembered that he was so small back then that he fits in-between my elbow and wrist as I carried him to sleep.

Time flies, and he grew up faster and heavier and spoke his first words of Daddy and Mommy.  He became aware that going to the airport is saying goodbye to me as I go back to Singapore.  This is what he was used to back then.

He became strict with his mother, making it sure that I cannot hug her or kiss her with his presence.  The thought of me not having a chance to hug my spouse in front of our kid is surprising and unusual. It was not the case when our 10-yr old was at the same age.

The worst thing was that he doesn't like my presence when he was going to sleep.  Seeing me beside him makes him irritable and eventually transfer to his nanny.  He also hated when I'm sleeping beside his mom.

My 10 and 3 year-old After the FSW Immigration in Canada
Low self-esteem and overprotective sons were the results of me working in Singapore for a couple of years.

It seems that God saw my situation and blessed me with our FSW Visa.  But, it didn't stop there, He provided us jobs that will change the relationship between me and my sons.

This is how it changed our lives...

My wife was working as an operator in a manufacturing industry, also a minimum wage earner.  By the way, she is a licensed teacher with more than 10 years experience in a private school in the Philippines.

She works in the afternoon until night and goes to bed at 2:00 in the morning.

Well, for me, I worked for an 8 to 5 job from Monday to Friday.  My wife and I are having a hard time to talk or see each other on weekdays.  She goes home while I'm fast asleep and off I go for work while she was still sleeping.

This situation didn't bother me at all because it gives me the opportunity to bond with my children. When my wife is out for work, I had another full time job.  Here's the job description...

- Taking care of my two sons
- Become a single "Mom/Dad"
- House cleaning
- Dishwasher
- Garbage collector
- Putting my kids to bed

These duties made me closer to my kids.  My 10-year old's self-confidence is getting better.   On the other hand, my 3-year old doesn't want to go to sleep without my stories of "Thomas and Friends" and requests me to sleep beside him every bedtime.

Having the chance to be with them and seeing them grow for at least at their toddler and teenage years was the best reward of being a Federal Skilled Worker Immigrant in Canada!

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A Minimum Wage Earner in Toronto Canada: Salary Vs. Expenses

After the job interview and knowing that I will start working on the next Monday, I was excited to tell my sister and everybody about the job.

It was a great feeling, knowing that I don't have to worry about my finances anymore, well at least for the time being.

While on my way home from the interview, walking along the pathway with more red maple leaves blocking my way, I appreciated more of the beauty of the surroundings.   What I saw was that...

* The grass is greener and the red maple leaves were not just red but has different sizes.   

* The pine trees along the way are not made of plastic at all.

* There were no trash along the road.

* Lastly, I was the only human walking along the pathway... 

The thought of my dilemmas that I've gone through with my FSW application to get in to this country, marks a smile of fulfillment on my face.

* I remembered how CIC returned my 2007 application on 2012.

Seeing the flag, with a red maple leaf, in front of the buildings made me realize that I'm now in Canada and soon to be part of their workforce.

On Monday, I will be included in the Minimum Wage Earner job market.

What My Friends Thought About My Job?
Besides announcing my new job with my wife and relatives, I also informed some of my close friends.  They like the idea of me having a job as a new immigrant, but they kept on advising me not to work at that level for a long time.

They advised me to look for a job that is more relevant to my experience and credentials.  As they were explaining their thoughts on me, their facial expression show signs of discontent and regret.

To give you an idea of my background,  I'm a licensed Engineer with more than 10 years of experience in my field, and worked in Singapore as a technical support for the Southeast Asian customers.

I fully understand what they thought of my new career, an Assembler, but the most important is my own decision.

When I arrive here, I never stopped planning. Although I haven't planned to be an assembler,  I know that this will soon to be part of my future success, which I was prepared for.

My Thoughts of Being in the Minimum Wage Earner Workforce
The first thing that I considered when I accepted this job was our cash flow.  The fact that I'm a new landed immigrant, with a limited money to burn, it's logical for me or "anyone" to get any type of job.

I have to cling on to something before I fall down completely.  Failing to have a job in Canada or any other place is not acceptable especially when your wife and kids are with you.

Being in this kind of job has a minimal stress and responsibilities.  The decision making is simple.  All I have to do is to pick some parts, inspect for damages and assemble it.   If there's something wrong with the parts, just call the supervisor for help.

Budgeting My Salary 
Having an $11.00/hr salary is minimal, it is insufficient to supply us with our weekly needs if I work alone.

Let me breakdown my salary and our expenses to give you an idea...

Salary: ($11.00 / Hr) x (8 hours/day) x (5days/week) = $440 / week
Expenses: 
CPP (Canada Pension Plan) = $18/week
Employment Insurance = $8/week
Tax (Federal Tax) = $43/week

Laundry ($60/month) = $15/week
House Rental ($880/month) = $220/week
Food ($60/week) = $60/week
Mobile Plan ($76/month) = $19/week
Internet ($95/month) = $23.75/week
Transportation = $56/week (using a GTA pass)
School Tuition = FREE
Hospitalization = FREE

If we do the Math...
Salary - Expenses = C$440 - C$462 (We are short of $22 per week)              

The good thing about Canada is that our kids have their own allowances from the government.  If parents are in the minimum wage, they can get around $300-400 per month more or less, depends upon the assessment.

This will compensate our negative income.  But, for me, I don't want to wait for the government's subsidy.  My wife and I agreed that she needs to have a job so that her income ($440/week without tax) will be our savings and so we can send some in Philippines.

So, if we add our net income together..

Ben = (- $ 22)  /week (negative income)
Net =    $ 371 /week ($440 less CPP, EI, Tax)
Kids =  $ 75 / week            $ 424 /week (Total Savings)           

Having this net income per week is enough for our family savings.

Of course, there will be expenses for our new house like furnitures, gadgets, new TV, etc... These can be included in the budget but is not considered as the essential expenses.  It means that we can still live without these items.

As long as we don't buy luxury things, we will be fine for now.

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