How Canadian culture surprised me

I am basically an Indian. While I was in India, I was completely happy, my husband had a good job, all my relatives were there near me. So I didn’t have any desire to go and settle in any other countries as I was completely satisfied.

My husband wanted to explore job opportunities in other countries. So after researching, my husband came to a decision to settle in Canada. I was not very happy as I didn’t want to leave India. But since my husband wanted to explore new opportunities, we came to Canada after getting a permanent residence.

When I came to Canada and observed the lifestyle here, several things surprised me. These things may not be probably shocking to people living in other countries or at least to some Indians.

1. The Canadian government offers many benefits: This is one of the things which Canada is probably known for.

• If you get a Permanent residence/Citizenship in Canada you will get a health card through which you can get all the health services free of cost. You just need to pay for the medicines. Vising a doctor, scanning, etc. is done free of cost. I have also heard that surgeries are done free of cost. But if you are not a Permanent resident or Citizen, health care can be costly at the same time
• Education is completely free in public schools (for Permanent residents and Citizens) till the student reaches the University
• Government grants are provided if you wish to join any courses at the University
• The government provides Employment Insurance if you are laid off, could not join work because of any illness, maternity benefits, etc. In the recent scenario of COVID -19, government benefits were provided for those who lost a job due to COVID 19

There are so many other benefits but I have highlighted only the major ones.

2. Respect given for women, children and aged people: This can be seen in different aspects, one of the simplest examples can be seen when women/children/aged people enter a public transport, people wake up from their seats so that the woman/child/ aged person can sit

If someone finds that you beat or harass your child or if your child complains to someone that he/she got beaten or harassed by his/her parents, that can be punishable under the law

3. Respect towards other cultures: Being a land of immigrants I was able to meet a lot of people from other countries or cultures. I was surprised to see how people respect other cultures without any kind of racist attitude

4. Equal dignity given to all kinds of jobs: People living here for a long time (irrespective of their basic country) and local Canadians give equal dignity to all the jobs. There is no such thing called as a low-profile job. It is a must to pay at least the minimum wages for any job as per the government rule. So people/students take up the minimum wage jobs to start a living here irrespective of their qualifications. You won’t be considered overqualified for the job. Students also learn to become independent and respect all kinds of jobs through this

5. Students get training at a very young age to start working: Adding to the previous point, students start working and earning right from the age of 16. Most of the students do part-time work along with their studies. They can earn at least the minimum wage which is certainly not a very small amount. This has got numerous benefits. They get enough exposure before starting their mainstream work, they learn to respect all jobs, they start learning how they can handle money, etc.

6. No age restrictions in jobs or education: You can get a new job at any age. There are no age restrictions. You can also enroll and take up any courses irrespective of your age. So even if a person migrates to Canada at a later stage in their life, that cannot prevent you from getting a job or joining a course!

7. Work-life balance: When it comes to the work atmosphere, people in Canada try to focus on their work during the time allotted to them. For example, if their time assigned is 7.5 hours, they try to work for those hours. There is no need to work extra time unnecessarily. For some jobs, you will be paid extra time if you wish to do so.

8. Approach to life: Canadians find time for vacation, spending quality time with their families, and other activities like gardening, traveling, etc. During the working days, they work for the stipulated time. But during holidays or vacation, they don’t get calls from their office, more correctly no one will call them for official things. They make it a point to enjoy with family or friends after the work hours

9. Respect for rules especially when it comes to driving: There are definite rules when it comes to driving. Each person driving is supposed to know all the rules. The drivers may have to pay a hefty penalty if they violate the stipulated speed limit or any of the rules

10. Do it yourself (DIY) culture: To a large extent, people avoid depending on others and try to do everything on their own. For example, household jobs are all done independently without the help of anyone outside, home renovation activities like painting are mostly done on their own by house owners themselves. Household jobs are made easier with the help of a Dishwasher, Vacuum cleaner, Washer and dryer, etc.

The list goes on endlessly like that…

Irrespective of the countries we live in, let’s try to adopt some good ideas from other countries or cultures and make the world a better place to live!