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I'm from BC, and can be of some assistance. You don't indicate your
country of origin, but I'll guess that it's the US. You also don't say
where you're planning on living in BC, but that's not critical either.
For BC, there are basically three economic scales: Vancouver, Victoria,
and everywhere else. If you're going to be a technical writer in
"everywhere else", all power to you. I expect they're fairly rare, and
besides, I don't have any experience in "everywhere else", so I can't
comment.
Victoria, the province's capital, is somewhat cheaper, in terms of cost
of living, than Vancouver. This also goes for salaries...also, because
it's roughly 1/6 the size of greater Vancouver, there are fewer jobs to
be had. All of my comments below regarding Vancouver also apply to
Vancouver, minus, say, 10-15% on salaries and cost of living. If you
prefer a slower lifestyle, Victoria is a good option (and a gorgeous
place to live).
Vancouver's a big, beautiful city and has all of the accompanying
benefits and problems. It rivals Toronto as being the most expensive
city in which to live in Canada. You're right in saying that the cost of
living is less than the US. Not 33% less, probably. I think I read some
stat that indicated it was about 20%, but don't quote me on that.
To give you a sense of how much things cost:
* A 700 square foot apartment in a new downtown highrise might cost CAN
$165 K - $180.
* The new Sheryl Crow album costs CAN $18.49 (from www.absound.com.
Vancouver is one of the cheapest places in the Western World for buying
legally-produced CDs).
* A 2000 Honda Civic might cost you CAN $18 K (from http://www.buysell.com/index.asp?r=9&ud=false).
Anyhow, in terms of salary, I think the STC salary surveys are generally
pretty accurate. They might be 3-5% low, but they're certainly in the
ballpark. Without naming names, a technical writer can definitely earn
CAN $55 K - $65 K in Vancouver. This is not exceptional, but they'd have
to be an experienced intermediate or senior writer with a decent
background and some technical expertise. The STC survey puts the mean
salary at $54 K generally. However, if you look at the last category, it
indicates that you'd need at least 6 years experience to achieve a
median of $58 K or higher. Still, these are relatively accurate numbers.
Over the past couple of years I've collected some anecdotal salary
information from colleagues, list members and anybody else willing to
tell me their salary. Note that some of this data may be up to two years
old, but it might help. I've pasted the results in below.
If you've got any questions about BC-specific companies or anything, let
me know. Thanks. DB.
Needless to say, all amounts are in Canadian dollars. Note also that
these
figures do not include benefits such as stock options or bonus packages
(which can range from, according to the respondents, from 10 - 15% of
salary
per year). Without naming any names, here's the info I got, heading east
to
west:
Halifax, NS
$42,000
Writer with one year experience and a Masters in Political Science
$40,000
Writer with one year of experience and two Masters degrees
$35,000
Entry-level writer with Bachelor of Arts in pertinent field (English,
Journalism or Communications)
Montreal, PQ
$30,000 - $35,000
Writer with 0 - 2 years of experience
$35,000 - $48,000
Writer with 0 - 2 years of experience
$48,000 - $55,000
Writer with 2 - 5 years of experience
Ottawa
$40-45/hr
BA in PoliSci, Diploma in Tech Writing
Training materials, Online help (webhelp mostly)
Contract writer/help author with 2 years experience
Toronto, ON
$44,000 - $52,000
Entry-level writers with 0 to 2 years experience
$50,000 - $65,000
Mid-level writers
$62,000 - $80,000
Senior writer
Ottawa, ON
$65,000
Senior writer at post-startup/pre-IPO company with technology diploma
Markham, ON
$63,000 - $67,000
Mid to senior writer
Cambridge, ON
0-1 yr with relevant post secondary: $30,000
0-1 yr without relevant post secondary: $23,000 - 28,000
2-3 yrs with post secondary: $40,000
2-3 yrs without relevant post secondary: $25,000 - $30,000
Winnipeg, MB
$54,000
Writer with twelve years experience and a Masters in English
$43,000
Writer with five years experience and some university
Calgary, AB
$66,000
Senior writer with 6 years and Masters degree in related field
Vancouver, BC
$60,000
Senior, supervising writer with three unrelated degrees and 5 years
experience.
$55,000
Mid-level writer with 3 years experience and some university
$42,000
Mid-level writer with 2 years experience and Bachelor of Fine Arts
$38, 500
Entry-level writer with 1 year experience and Bachelor of Science
Victoria, BC
$48,000
Writer with one year experience and a degree in computer science
> -----Original Message-----
> From: bounce-techwr-l-65243 -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
>
> To put it bluntly, a salary equivalent to US$50k is
> considered highly exceptional, and even above the top end of
> the scale. In general, salaries in excess of C$55k seem to
> be regarded in awe by the average Canadians. Is this true,
> and if so, is it because the cost of living is also around
> 2/3 that of US (when comparing like with like, e.g. in housing, etc.)?
>
> Sorry to trouble the list on this - I would approach the
> Canadians on the list, but the addresses I have for many of
> them from a year or two back are defunct.
>
> Thanks
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