How to Get a Job in Gran Canaria

If you want to know how to find jobs in Gran Canaria it is a bit harder than it was 10 years ago when I came over. I found my first job online. It was in Eddie Rockets (Empty Pockets) in Playa del Inglés (it's not there any more). I applied online then came over and had to wait a couple of weeks until it got busy enough for me to start.


Photo by Pieterjanviaene

I'd never waitressed before so it was a big of a learning curve (and a bit different from sitting around typing and sending emails all day!) It took me a while to hold a tray (and I mean with 2 hands and only 2 plates on it!) I have a photo of myself with my Eddie Rockets uniform on (bow tie etc) which I am not going to put on here - you can imagine it for yourself.

Anyway that was the first of many jobs I had. I moved on to bar work then was downloading the Top 40 and selling CDs to the bars and clubs and then I taught myself to DJ and did that for 2 years.


Me as a DJ - hee hee!

I currently spend the mornings writing articles for websites and the afternoons selling sea fishing trips. It's a nice balance because I wouldn't want to be at home alone all the time and I wouldn't want to be sitting in the harbour all the time either.

Tips for Finding a Job in Gran Canaria

First of all, you will have more success if you are actually here. I know I found work online but that was 10 years ago. It's pretty quiet this year in general because of the crap exchange rate so jobs aren't exactly growing on trees.

Buy a package holiday to Gran Canaria or a flight (whichever is cheaper, it does vary) and make sure you have enough money to last for 6 months. You might not find work immediately or you might find commission only work and not get paid for a while.

Get yourself a Spanish sim card for your phone. Movistar, Vodafone and Amena are the top 3 phone companies here and you can get a 15€ sim card with 15€ of credit on it. Go around all the bars, restaurants and shops, leaving your name and phone number.

Don't give up hope. Once you get to know other workers you might hear of jobs through the grapevine.

Scandinavian season tends to be from October to April and most tourists in that period are Scandinavian. Languages do help but if you speak only English you can still find work. Spanish helps of course (with finding an apartment, finding things in shops etc).


Photo by CornholioLU

Have a look at http://www.studyspanish.com/freesite.htm and http://spanishfree.org/ to begin with. You can also find a Spanish teacher when you are over for group learning or 1:1 classes.

You can advertise your skills in http://tipsandinfo.co.uk/ if you are looking for work too but nothing beats being here and doing the legwork from place to place.

Legalities

If you are an EU citizen you can work here. If not you will need to find out about visas. You should get a contract when you start and if this enables you to receive medical care and unemployment benefits. Lots of places take on casual staff (they don't bother with contracts) so watch if it that applies to you because you won't be entitled to anything if they suddenly don't need you any more.