I strongly believe that spouses should
accompany the expats that want to come and work in Kazakhstan. Spouses and
partners have the ability to bring some normality to the new location, and it
is a helpful way for expats to deal with the culture shock, as they will have
someone that will understand their viewpoint and tend to have a similar background
as them.
The majority of expat spouses are still
women, but expatriate husbands are also not uncommon in Almaty.
Sadly, there are limited activities
available for the stay at home spouse, especially if they are not very sport or
outdoor orientated. Almaty is great if you have the financial means, time, and
inclination to practice winter sports like skiing or playing golf in the
summer.
Although the support for expatriates has
been acknowledged as key to successful integration, many companies do not
believe that the life of their spouses/ partners are difficult, and therefore few
companies have the tendency to provide them with support.
The reality is that expats still have some
normality in their working life, as the work environment, however difficult,
still represents an environment where they are respected and valued. In the
work environment they are still surrounded by people that they can communicate
with and where they can feel confident in their own abilities.
The same cannot be said for the spouses/
partners who are thrown into a new environment with a no support system.
Unlike the expat, the spouses and partners will
experience a greater culture shock as they carry on with the domestic duties in
the new environment. In their normal day to day they are unlikely to encounter
anyone that speaks English or are unlikely to experience anything that is
familiar. Communication will be a problem, finding stuff that you want will be
a problem, and commuting around town could also be a problem... these are simple
things that can be overlooked by the company and even the working partner.
Therefore the difficulty of adjustment for
an expat spouse in a new environment should not be underestimated!
I hope you have enjoyed this post and look
out for the follow up post, which will review other aspects of the expatriate
spouse/ partner.
