The Province of Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is the fifth largest Province in Canada,
encompassing 251,366 square miles of which 22,921 square miles
are inland water. As one of the Prairie Provinces, it is
neighbors with Alberta to the West and Manitoba to the East. To
the South it is bordered by the US states of North Dakota and
Montana, with the Canadian Northwest Territories and Nunavut to
the North. Saskatchewan, along with its neighbor Alberta, is one
of only two Provinces in Canada that have no saltwater coast.
Most of the Province is in the Central Time Zone, GMT - 6 hours,
and mostly does not observe daylight saving time. However, the
exception to this is the City of Lloydminster uses Mountain Time
and does observe daylight saving time. The population of
Saskatchewan, 996,194 (October 2004), lives mostly in the
principle cities, Regina (provincial capital), Saskatoon
(largest city), Moosejaw and Prince Albert (northernmost city).
These cities are in the southern half of the province. North of
Prince Albert is the wilderness of the Canadian Shield which is
mostly inaccessible except by float plane. This wilderness is
famous to the hunters, fishermen and adventurers that travel
there looking to experience the beauty and seclusion of the
area.
The South of the Province is mainly made up of prairie
landscape, which does incorporate some hills and ravines. There
are several National and Provincial Parks that provide
protection for the wildlife and fantastic Recreational
Opportunities. The Province has great seasonal variations in
temperature. Winters are generally cold; Regina has an average
low of -22 degrees centigrade to an average high of -11 degrees
centigrade in January. Summers are generally hot with July
average temperatures ranging from 12 degrees centigrade to 26
degrees centigrade. Precipitation is relatively light, with more
rainfall in late summer. Snowfalls are not normally too heavy
but the snow remains on the ground for long periods of time.
Averages of 2000 - 2500 hours of sunshine annually make it
Canada's sunniest Province. The City of Estevan in the southeast
records an average of 2540 hours of sunshine a year.
Saskatchewan has an abundance of natural resources and is
quickly gaining the reputation as one of the richer Provinces.
With Minerals, Oil and Gas forming the backbone of the industry,
Saskatchewan also has a diverse manufacturing base along with
Forestry, Agriculture and Tourism as its Key Businesses.
The Government of Saskatchewan is administered by the New
Democratic Party of Saskatchewan led by the Premier Lorne
Calvert. Saskatchewan does offer an attractive Provincial
Nominee Program which if you qualify will speed up the
immigration process and may generate a job offer before you
arrive. Though Saskatchewan is definitely one of the cheaper
places to live in Canada it does have PST at 7% and various
other forms of Personal Taxation that is worth researching
before you arrive. As with all the Provinces, the Saskatchewan
Government is responsible for a variety of areas. The Employment
Laws will need to be studied as they vary between Provinces and
cover everything from your responsibilities and rights as an
employee to the minimum wage and vacation entitlement.
Health and Safety at work is taken very seriously and in the
event of workplace injuries, the Workers Compensation Board will
provide advice and assistance with medical expenses. There is a
Provincial Healthcare System for the residents. As with the
Healthcare system, the Education System is a top priority for
most Canadians. There has been increased funding for both areas
announced by the Federal Government as well as GST rebates for
the major cities. Saskatchewan's Driving regulations are
administered by the Provincial Governments SGI which covers
everything from licensing and registration to basic insurance
for each vehicle. The Provinces only professional sports team
have arguably the best fans in the CFL and are the Saskatchewan
Roughriders. Famous not only for their fanatic, vocal support
you can always guarantee a lot of melons being used for head
gear at a roughrider game!
For more, detailed information and great links please go to
http://www.onestopimmigration-canada.com/saskatchewan.html