Move to perth - some questions

gary the great

I had a a thread on this earlier in the year but cant find it and the time is getting closer, so I thought id just start a new one.


It’s getting closer to my proposed move to Perth, I’m starting to get cold feet a little.

I’m doing lots of research etc, I’ve all but secured a job (6month contract with a view to sponsorship) with a $55k salary (is this enough to have a good standard of living?) and have a friend out there that is renting a room in a house, he is going to start looking for a house/apartment for us to share over the coming weeks, so I can move straight in.


I don’t know why I’m getting cold feet, I’ve been to Oz before and loved it didn’t want to come home (albeit the east coast), I love the sun, the ozzies are cool, I can have a good job out there compared to my dead end job over here etc but I’m still unsure.

Also the fact Perth is so isolated kind of puts me off a little! And people are saying that there’s lots of aboriginals in Perth that constantly hassle you? I know its no reason not to go, but just want everything to be considered.


What do they think of the Irish out there? I heard it’s a very multinational place.

Also what are the Perth people like to work with? Are they laid back and very hard tough workers?

Also is there anything I should bring with me/have done before going out? I’ll be getting a new passport, there sonly 18months left on mine at the moment.


Anymore tips/advice/websites etc would be cool

Ginger

The user Xavi6 lives in Perth .. he would have some good info.

A couple of mates of mine moved out there and are doing well. They have settled in no problem and havent a bad word to say about the place at all

Xavi6

Firstly a big 'Wow' on all the pre-conceived ideas you have about Perth. Most of them are way, way off.

Ok, here goes -

gary the great wrote: »

I’m doing lots of research etc, I’ve all but secured a job (6month contract with a view to sponsorship) with a $55k salary (is this enough to have a good standard of living?) and have a friend out there that is renting a room in a house, he is going to start looking for a house/apartment for us to share over the coming weeks, so I can move straight in.

55k and sharing a place means you're sorted. Cost of living over here is less than home. Myself and the missus aren't making anywhere near that each but we've no problems. Have a two bedroom apartment, a car, broadband internet, bill phones, private health insurance etc. and still manage to save about a grand a month.

Money should not be a problem for you.

gary the great wrote: »

Also the fact Perth is so isolated kind of puts me off a little! And people are saying that there’s lots of aboriginals in Perth that constantly hassle you? I know its no reason not to go, but just want everything to be considered.

Perth is isolated from what exactly? Civilisation?

The fact is that Perth and it's surrounding area is massive and completely urbanised. It's a city just as much as anywhere else. It's a couple of hours flight to the east coast. No big deal. Sure if you were over there you'd still have to fly if you wanted to go from Sydney to Melbourne.

Yeah there are aboriginals here but sure there are scumbags and Roma gypsies in Ireland. Just because they're there doesn't mean you have to interact with them. Like all other groups there's good and bad apples so it's not fair to have made your mind up about them before you get here.

gary the great wrote: »

What do they think of the Irish out there? I heard it’s a very multinational place.

They like the Irish in general but like anywhere else in the world if you're a cock then they won't like you.

gary the great wrote: »

Also what are the Perth people like to work with? Are they laid back and very hard tough workers?

Laid back for the most part, enjoy their beaches, barbies etc. Good drinkers.

It's not like you're moving to Mars! Australia is very much Americanised, just like Ireland.

gary the great wrote: »

Also is there anything I should bring with me/have done before going out? I’ll be getting a new passport, there sonly 18months left on mine at the moment.

Drivers licence. If you have a full one you can just swap it for a full WA licence which is handy as it's a credit card size thing and means you won't have to carry your passport on nights out.

gary the great

Deadly xavi thanks for that info, cleared up some misconnceptions i had about the place. Cheers for the pm to.

Will buy you a Tooheys when I head out!

BarryCreed

just a quick one. did you just apply for a job over there, and they said "we'll sponsor you" or did u have to get your visa first, then apply for the job....?

gary the great

I plan on going over on the 1 year working visa, starting a job and then being sponsered in that job - we'll i have been told thats pretty much what will happen

BarryCreed

yeah, thats what id be doing as well. just wanted to suss out that id be able to geta "proper job" on the 1 year visa. e.g. technical writer.

was talking to a mate yesterday, his brother was in perth, and moved down to Mandurah (outside Perth, on the way to Margaret River). He's a painter. He's getting $1,000 a week, free accommodation and use of a car, and says they finish early afternoons most days. loves it there...

gary the great

Ye Mandurah is where im going to be working. I have the job sorted out and everything, did my phone interview and it was so straight forward, there is a massive shortage of skills in my field of work over there and my employer was asking me to give all my mates from college a ring to see if they were intrested! There is 0 jobs in what i do over here, so I can see a few more from my course heading that way.

BarryCreed

gary the great wrote: »

Ye Mandurah is where im going to be working. I have the job sorted out and everything, did my phone interview and it was so straight forward, there is a massive shortage of skills in my field of work over there and my employer was asking me to give all my mates from college a ring to see if they were intrested! There is 0 jobs in what i do over here, so I can see a few more from my course heading that way.

so you applied form ireland?? hmm, can you tell me more. i was resigned to having to go over, and then look for work...

did u send CV to recruit crowd or just apply on spec..?

gary the great

I work in Local Government and have a mate out there who gave me the email of a bloke that provides local governement workplace solutions, we sorted it out and he rang me with 2 other people and did an interview, sent me 3 or 4 job offers, i consulted with my mate and choose the best one!

Start date 4th november, going to set off in September and stop in Thailand and Loas for a while, try and be in Perth by late October.

BarryCreed

gary the great wrote: »

I work in Local Government and have a mate out there who gave me the email of a bloke that provides local governement workplace solutions, we sorted it out and he rang me with 2 other people and did an interview, sent me 3 or 4 job offers, i consulted with my mate and choose the best one!

Start date 4th november, going to set off in September and stop in Thailand and Loas for a while, try and be in Perth by late October.

jeez, that was a handy way of getting a job alright...

gary the great

I know i was blessed, just got lucky I suppose and shows the sheer demand for peopel with my qualification

Diamondmaker

I was much the same.

Sent CV from hostel in Brizzy, got call from aency while on line, had 2 interviews he next day and offer by end of week.

There is tonnes of work in construction here and especially WA. The skill shortage there is sharper than rest of Oz and they are even actively trying to poach skills and trades from Qld, claiming better beaches and better outdoor life than the outdoor life capital territory that is Qld!

The mines in WA have also taken a lot of skills and labour from WA also contributing sharply to the skill and labour shortage.

Money is good too, certainly in building and I am finding an easier work day and no culture of styaing late. Cost of living is MUCH lower than Dublin if you stay away from Sidders and Melbourne, so Perth will be good.

You do start earlier but I always was a moring person and as sun rise is early here there is no point being a late riser.

Only downside of Perth is your ability to see the rest of Oz due to distance, cost and time of travelling such distances.

Good luck

gary the great

Diamondmaker wrote: »

I was much the same.

Sent CV from hostel in Brizzy, got call from aency while on line, had 2 interviews he next day and offer by end of week.

There is tonnes of work in construction here and especially WA. The skill shortage there is sharper than rest of Oz and they are even actively trying to poach skills and trades from Qld, claiming better beaches and better outdoor life than the outdoor life capital territory that is Qld!

The mines in WA have also taken a lot of skills and labour from WA also contributing sharply to the skill and labour shortage.

Money is good too, certainly in building and I am finding an easier work day and no culture of styaing late. Cost of living is MUCH lower than Dublin if you stay away from Sidders and Melbourne, so Perth will be good.

You do start earlier but I always was a moring person and as sun rise is early here there is no point being a late riser.

Only downside of Perth is your ability to see the rest of Oz due to distance, cost and time of travelling such distances.

Good luck

Cheers for the input.

ive already seen the East coast of Oz so not to concerned about that, although I would prefer if Sidders and Melly were only a few hours drive for weekends away etc
Where do people from Perth (whats the name for Perth people, Perthians or something ) generally take their summer holidays to, seeign as its pretty far from everywhere? South East Aisa, the Philipines etc? Im an avid traveller and thats a worry for me that there will be no more weekend breaks to a random Ryanair flying destination.

Also how many days holidays is the average in WA, 21 days like Ireland?

Xavi6

Do you mean annual leave like? That's usually 4 weeks.

Holiday destinations would generally be Thailand or Bali. Some other obscure places you could go to as well i.e. Vanuatu is meant to be unreal.

Beautybeanie

I work in Local Government and have a mate out there who gave me the email of a bloke that provides local governement workplace solutions, we sorted it out and he rang me with 2 other people and did an interview, sent me 3 or 4 job offers, i consulted with my mate and choose the best one!

That's for temporary work, though, right? Permanent offers in this method aren't legal. They have to be gazetted and only citizens/residents can apply.

Perth is great. Lived there for two years. Yes, it's isolated but only if you allow that fact to do your head in. Western Australia is a state of many contrasts and an exciting part of the world to be in. $50K is a good wage to start with and will have you living in comfort. I usually measure dollar for euro so if you imagine yourself earning 50K in Euro, that's what it'll be.

And people are saying that there’s lots of aboriginals in Perth that constantly hassle you? I know its no reason not to go, but..

Not sure why people are frightened enough to mention that. Comments such as this stem from ignorance. You're just as likely to be hassled by the junkies in the CBD than you are by anyone of any ethnicity. One thing you should never forget (cultural/social tip) - the Aborigines were here first and the British took it off them as well as their rights, children and language. Sound familiar?

What do they think of the Irish out there? I heard it’s a very multicultural place.

I'll be honest here. It depends.

The Irish and British are notorious for hanging together in very large groups and this is seen as isolationist and alienates people. You'll find placenames nicknamed with Irish names to illustrate this point. My advice - get out and make friends with people from all over, not just your own.

Workwise, when I was working in a corporate job supervising and training staff, I had huge problems with a steady stream of them. They expected everything to be easy and thought that Australians spent much of their time drinking and taking it easy. It was embarrassing given that I am from Ireland (born there) and granted this may have been a cultural misunderstanding but it led to my workplace putting a ban on employing people on working visas which I felt was very unfortunate.

Also what are the Perth people like to work with? Are they laid back and very hard tough workers?

Perth is great to work in. Laid back socially but hard workers. If you work hard and play when you're supposed to, you'll be fine.

Also is there anything I should bring with me/have done before going out? I’ll be getting a new passport, there is only 18months left on mine at the moment.

A healthy bank account. Immigration officials will check this.
Your health card - Irish have reciprocal Medicare rights here.
A decent flash drive with an up to date, lockable CV on it. Do not include your birth date on your CV.
Research Perth. Find places you want to visit, things you want to do. Nothing's worse than getting there and going, 'so now what?'

You'll have a great time.

gary the great

BeautyBeanie thats a fantastic post thanks a million. Answered a lot of questions.

In realtion to the working, they'll be puttign me on a 3month temp contract and then if its all OK we'll go for the sponsership. The job im going for has been advertised for 2 years and nobody has applied.

It sounds like my kinda place, i do work hard but also play hard.

I see what your sayng about the irish wanting an easy ride out there, most of them are there on the 1 year visa and like to get pissed on goon every single night, work is only there to pay for the goon etc I seen it myself when i was over the East Coast.

The bank account is healthy enough, should have no problems there.

The only thing that has me worried is that when i was over on the East Coast, when coming home from Brisbane airport (where I slept for the night), I left my bag unattended while i went across to the shop to get a bottle of water. Very stupid i know but i was very tired and everybody was leaving there bags around. 2mins later when i got back and 2 police officers were standing beside it, they went mad at me, checked my details on the system, took my passport for a bit. Im just afraid this could be on my record or something and stop me gettign a visa, doubt it though....

kittex

Beautybeanie wrote: »

Your health card - Irish have reciprocal Medicare rights here.

Would the European Health card, confirming that you're Irish count for this?

I am Irish and have 7 years of PRSI contributions, but have been in the UK 8 years, so I guess it might be better to go as a 'UK' resident as they have a similar reciprocal agreement.

Beautybeanie

In realtion to the working, they'll be puttign me on a 3month temp contract and then if its all OK we'll go for the sponsership.

Congratulations on the temp assignment. Be aware, though, that they can't promise sponsorship (not lawful) and that your employment can be severed without reason at any time (lawful). So as soon as you get in, hit the ground running and use your charm to get to know people and prepare Plan B and C in case you need them.

The job im going for has been advertised for 2 years and nobody has applied.

Find this hard to believe. Each position goes through reclassification after a period of 12 months. Find out why nobody has applied for this position as conditions may be attached that make a situation untenable for most people.

It sounds like my kinda place, i do work hard but also play hard.

You'll have no problem then.

The bank account is healthy enough, should have no problems there.

Recommendation: once you get into Australia, open a credit union (not bank) account and have your pay go in there, leaving your savings a separate entity. This offsets tax liabilities as well as provides you with a decent savings plan.

2mins later when i got back and 2 police officers were standing beside it, they went mad at me, checked my details on the system, took my passport for a bit. Im just afraid this could be on my record or something and stop me gettign a visa, doubt it though....

Bags left unattended are a big no no (as you've no doubt discovered). But this isn't a disqualifying offence. If you'd punched the copper it would've been. Then again, you'd still be in gaol. Haha.

Feel free to ask further questions if need be.

Beautybeanie

Would the European Health card, confirming that you're Irish count for this?

I am Irish and have 7 years of PRSI contributions, but have been in the UK 8 years, so I guess it might be better to go as a 'UK' resident as they have a similar reciprocal agreement.

No. You'll need to bring your NHS registration card. Eligibility is determined via residency (which is why I mentioned it to Gary as he is residing in Ireland) not citizenship so in your case you would apply to Medicare under the UK banner.

For the pair of you, such an agreement entitles you to limited subsidised health services for immediately necessary treatment while visiting Australia.

In brief, (because things can change depending on what visa you hold) you are entitled to:

• free treatment as a public in-patient or outpatient at a public hospital
• access to subsidised medicines under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme during your visit to Australia.
• attend a doctor's appointment and be bulk billed (ie. hand over your Medicare card, they swipe it, you sign form, leave without paying a cent) where applicable (some doctors won't bulk bill...bastids)

You'll still need private health insurance but you can switch it to a local provider which will provide you with a tax break. The 1% levy has been raised to those earning over 100K.

Break a leg!

kittex

Uhuh, I stated I would come under as a UK resident not citizen...

Jeez beanie, I must have really wronged you at some point in the past.

Beautybeanie

I don't understand your attitude, Kittex.
I just answered your question. I wasn't aware you were a UK resident until you said so. Is there something I missed?
No bad feeling this end.