Antarctica Jobs

Bungarra

Any permanent residents want to try Antarctica for a few months? Job applications for various roles (tradesmen, medical, engineering, science) open for the next month only from today.
I'm not a permanent resident yet so can't apply -_-

http://www.antarctica.gov.au/jobs/jobs-in-antarctica

catbear

Would the beer be any cheaper?

Bungarra

I think I read in one of the info pdfs you have to pre-purchase your own alcohol and they transport it there for you. "Can I have 20 cartons of xxxxxxx please?" I don't think that'd go down too well though!

Mellor

The salary package is pretty good tbh.

lg123

would jump on an opportunity like that if i could, it'd be an amazing experience.

Bungarra

lg123 wrote: »

would jump on an opportunity like that if i could, it'd be an amazing experience.

Yeah, I'd love to go, something completely different... Next year maybe! :mad:

My_Sharona

Bungarra wrote: »

I think I read in one of the info pdfs you have to pre-purchase your own alcohol and they transport it there for you. "Can I have 20 cartons of xxxxxxx please?" I don't think that'd go down too well though!

Keeping it cold wouldn't be an issue at least!

pete4130

The money isn't good for how remote you are and the conditions you are working in. It's pretty much city rates plus allowances which are less than working in oil & gas in Australia. I get a lot more for working in QLD.
It'd be good experience and but for anyone who hasn't worked away in work camps/remote areas it might be quite a shock to the system with small rooms, lack of privacy, nowhere to go, same faces day in day out, possibility of poor to no comms/internet/phone reception.

The only upside really is you don't have anywhere to spend your money and your meals/accommodation are provided so it's a good way to save money.

Bungarra

pete4130 wrote: »

The money isn't good for how remote you are and the conditions you are working in. It's pretty much city rates plus allowances which are less than working in oil & gas in Australia. I get a lot more for working in QLD.
It'd be good experience and but for anyone who hasn't worked away in work camps/remote areas it might be quite a shock to the system with small rooms, lack of privacy, nowhere to go, same faces day in day out, possibility of poor to no comms/internet/phone reception.

The only upside really is you don't have anywhere to spend your money and your meals/accommodation are provided so it's a good way to save money.

Not everybody thinks along the "money is everything" lines though...

Mellor

pete4130 wrote: »

The money isn't good for how remote you are and the conditions you are working in. It's pretty much city rates plus allowances which are less than working in oil & gas in Australia. I get a lot more for working in QLD.

You get more that 56k allowances for working in oil and gas? I literally have no clue about the industry, but i'd be surprised id every worker in the oil and gas industry was getting that on top of their salary, but maybe they are.

The salary itself is basic, but I was referring to the whole package. 56k bonus, 15% super. And then food and accom is covered, so after tax and super the rest is essentially savings. I think the packages range from something like $135k to $205k.
Maybe we simply have a different idea of what a good salary package is. I've been stuck on a 457 too long.

lg123

the novelty would probably wear thin after a while, but i don't think i'd be going there for the money alone. its supposed to be unreal down there.

pete4130

Bungarra wrote: »

Not everybody thinks along the "money is everything" lines though...

Who said I think along those lines?

I meant the salary are city rates plus allowances on top of those rates as a package. My package is more. It depends who you work for and what the EBA (enterprise bargaining agreement) is.

Antarctica would be good experience, money is better than working in a city. IT would get boring for most after a time. I do 3 weeks on/1 week off, have done 4 on/1 off and 2 on/2off. Your work life becomes your social life.

I'm lucky enough to be about 3 km from a fairly big town and its still routine and tedious. With rostered work like that you'll most likely be up at 4:30am-5am every morning, doing 12 hour days so you get 3 or 4 hours after work to socialise, have dinner etc before you go to bed. I'm up at 4:30 every morning, back at camp by 5:30pm, have dinner, grab a beer, make lunch for the following day (more of a sleep in if you make it the night before) and in bed by 8 or 9pm is the usual routine.

It's a great experience in a very different part of the world. It's also a shift in lifestyle and a culture shock. It's also hard to walk away from a job that you earn a lot of money from. You go back to a regular job and it feels like you are underpaid. It's addictive and lots of people who work in the industry will say that, myself included. I've worked back in Sydney sporadically after growing tired of remote work but keep coming back to it.