Welcome to the Summer edition of Thinkr.

Contents:
Relocation and Immigration news
Upcoming events
Editorial
Archive

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Thank you to our loyal readers for their patience while Thinkr, your relocation newsletter, was on hiatus. We are back and will be published once per quarter, or, as we prefer to think of it, once per season. Please enjoy this Summer edition.

Lists
More interesting nuggets for everyone involved with recruitment and relocation:

Canada's Most Walkable Cities
Source: WestJet's Up! Magazine

Canada's Best Places to Live
Source: Canadian Business

BC's Most Innovative Companies
Source: BC Business

Think About it

The End: IT Workers Program ends September 30th

The plug has finally been pulled after a 10+ year run. The facilitated (faster) processing for IT workers that fit into one of the seven special job categories is ending September 30, 2010. Employers can no longer rely on this program and must look at other alternatives.

The End: E-LMO Program ended April 30th

The E-LMO Program for pre-qualified employers hiring certain construction, engineering and hospitality positions came to an end on April 30th. Employers are back to using the regular LMO process.

Reminder: Advertising Requirements for LMO Applications

With the greater reliance on Labour Market Opinions, this link becomes more relevant. The advertising requirements vary based on the NOC level of the position. All positions must be posted for at least fourteen days within the last three months. Details on what must be in the postings and where it's posted are provided in the above link.

Emergency Work Permits

Situations involving serious illness or death of a family member may warrant emergency work permit processing. The process involves first contacting the Call Centre who will evaluate the situation and refer the case to the Processing Centre in Vegreville or the local Immigration office.

Statistics: Labour Market Opinions

Ever wondered how many LMO's are processed for each skill level and in each province? Or how many LMO's are issued across Canada in total? All this and more is available on the HRSDC website.

Canadian Trivia

CIC's Teacher's Corner includes a Canadian Trivia game and crossword. Test your knowledge and pass the time on this site in preparation for Canada Day.

Children and International Moves

Advice on how to help children manage the stressful and exciting challenges of an international relocation.

Think Ahead

Immigration Basics

Our popular HR Summer School workshop is back! This half-day session was designed to cover the theoretical and the practical.  We’ll give you enough information to be knowledgeable, but not overwhelmed.   Our focus is on empowering HR Professionals to manage these complex issues, whether it's by building this expertise in-house or knowing enough to effectively manage external consultants.

CERC Conference 2010

The annual CERC conference focusses entirely on issues relevant to the relocation industry including taxation, immigration and corporate relocation program development.

Get all the latest Immigration and Relocation Events on our website.

Thank You

Sincere thanks to everyone in the Think Relocation family for their patience, good wishes and assistance over the past six months. In particular, we'd like to thank:

KayJay Business Services
Global Steps Relocation Consulting

Think Tank

The Power of Family

We've been doing a lot of thinking about family here at Think Relocation Consulting. And we're feeling very grateful for every type of family we have.

There is obviously the traditional definition of family - those you are related to by blood. These family members are chosen for you by the universe and you learn to live with them and hopefully love them for a lifetime. Then there is the family that you choose, your circle of close friends that are family. These folks are there with you to share their adventures, their joys, their pains, their antics. And there is our work family - the people we interact with in the workplace that share our daily adventures, water cooler chatter, giggles and griefs. Whether you are family by blood, friendship or work, you are key in the pursuit of happiness. Family dinners, nights out, and company events are all the more enjoyable. The memories made together give us the warm and fuzzies. And sometimes photos that we may (or may not) want preserved for posterity!

At Think Relocation Consulting, we are lucky to have such a wonderful extended family. We've been receiving good karma, warm messages, and much thoughtfulness from all. Thank you. And right back at you. What goes around comes around so what's coming around to you is good stuff indeed.

Much thanks,

Marlene
Principal, Think Relocation Consulting