Working in Brazil

by Susan Musich

Having just returned from speaking at a conference in Sao Paolo, Brazil, I thought I’d share with you some of the opportunities and challenges of working in Brazil.

With a population close to 200 million, you can imagine the challenge of so many people trying to find a job. The Brazilian government has strict laws to protect jobs for its citizens, and companies need to prove how an expatriate would be better qualified than a Brazilian for a certain job. This is a great challenge for many companies since there are so many highly-skilled Brazilians available for employment.

Career Options

The best way for expats to find employment in the country is through a multinational company. Such companies often offer attractive expat benefits, including housing, health insurance, car or transportation allowance, and educational support for children.

However, if you are the accompanying spouse/partner, chances are slim that you can land a job before entering the country. Many spouses/partners end up as English language tutors, or even translators if they are fluent in Portuguese. Salaries tend to be significantly lower as a teacher, and pay is usually by the hour. Setting up a small business is an option, but the bureaucratic procedures may deter your efforts.

Different Cities—Different Opportunities

Sao Paolo—a city of 10 million inhabitants—has a plethora of multinational companies and English teaching services while many expats in Rio de Janeiro may want to focus their job search on IT-related careers (if you have the skills) or, alternatively, consider working with a nonprofit/nongovernmental organization (NGO).  In Brasilia, opportunities for spouses/partners are with embassies and offices of international organizations, such as The World Bank. Some opportunities may also exist with the Brasilia International School or teaching English.

The greatest challenge most expats face is the work permit. Many organizations are hesitant to offer a work permit to an expat due to the strict laws of protecting the jobs for the nationals. However, if you want further information on the process, you can review the official website of Brazil’s Labor and Employment ministry at www.mte.gov.br. It has comprehensive information about all aspects of employment in Brazil. Expats can find information at the “international” section at http://www.mte.gov.br/trab_estrang_ing/default.asp. This section is in Portuguese, English, and Spanish. You can also find information on the work permit and visa process at Fragomen’s website at http://pubweb.fdbl.com/ihp8/global/media85.nsf/public-country-briefs/brazil?opendocument#top.  Fragomen is an international law firm that focuses on immigration.

If you have ever worked in Brazil, what recommendations or strategies can you offer spouses/partners or students seeking employment in the country? Leave your comments here.

Get Globally Connected!

I’ve worked job seekers from more than 180 countries. I have yet to find a job seeker whose country doesn’t use some form of networking to find employment opportunities. Whether you call it “networking” in the United States, “guanxi” in Hong Kong, or “reseautage” in France, it’s all the same thing: Making connections!

Making connections is a part of daily life in most parts of the world. We can’t survive alone—nor would most people want to. It’s natural to connect with others who share similar interests, which is why networking on a job search should be an innate part of your job search strategy.

However, many international job seekers struggle with networking when they are moving to a different country. Although this may seem to be a challenge, it’s one worth taking on! Let’s take a look at three steps you can take to develop your global contacts:

STEP 1:  Reach out to your current network
Write an email that you can send out to all of those in your current network. Let them know that you are planning for your transition and would appreciate any support they can offer with regard to developing any contacts in your destination country. Perhaps they work with someone else who might have a contact there. The contact does not have to be in your career field. Initial contacts can be anybody who can connect with you to give you any information about the job search in your country.

STEP 2:  Get connected virtually before you go!
There are endless ways to connect virtually with people around the globe. LinkedIn at www.LinkedIn.com  is an excellent start. Get your profile up and start searching around the profiles by using key words, such as your country name and your career field. Reach out to others on LinkedIn. You’ll be surprised at how responsive most people are!

Get involved with online groups related to your destination country. You’ll have to do a bit of sleuthing to find some of them, but many leads can be found on ExpatWomen’s site at www.ExpatWomen.com.  This is an excellent site that provides outstanding resources for anyone launching an international transition.

STEP 3:  Contact your alumni office for country contacts
Many countries—including the US and UK—have alumni offices for university graduates. Some secondary schools also keep track of alumni.  Alumni are excellent resources for job search support. Most alumni are delighted to connect with and help out a fellow alum. Contact your alumni office or alumni coordinator and ask them how you can find out if any alumni are living in your destination country.  This goes for fraternities and sororities as well. Also, if there is a database you can search, search around for alumni who previously lived in your destination country, if that information is available.

CONCLUSION
Getting globally connected becomes easier with some creative thinking and resourcefulness. Online social networks are powerful when used appropriately and reaching out to others for networking purposes is becoming more common now that people spend less time in any one job.  Remember, however, to build a powerful, global network, you need to maintain it by nurturing it. Stay connected with the people who offer you support and let them know how your transition is going. Chances are they may need to lean on you for making contacts in the future.  This is the heart of “guanxi.”

How do you make contacts around the world? Share your strategies, ideas, suggestions here!