Why do so many Kiwis leave for Australia?
Filed under: Cost of living, Economics, Getting to New Zealand, Life in New Zealand
The herald ran a piece asking kiwis for thier thoughts on whether they are considering moving to Australia. I thought it was interesting because for a lot of immigrants there’s a bit of a toss up between going to Aus or NZ – things like this give a different perspective on the whole issue. A frequent complaint about us immigrants from Kiwis is that we only come here so that we can get residence for 2 years and then go to Aus. Of course it ignores the fact that people also get residence in Asutralia as a way of getting into NZ because it’s easer for people to get jobs in Australia.
It also completley ignores the fact that the vast majority of people so sick of New Zealand that they move to Australia – are KIWIS.
Not Immigrants.
Here’s a selection of some of the more colourful comments (inclusion in no way should be taken as a sign that I agree with these comments)- but I really recommend working through them all.
“NZ – where we are forced to pay global prices for our products – but cannot earn global incomes. As a social experiment, NZ is a failure, if not a disaster.
New Zealand employers need to realise that they are in a global contest for talent. To attract and retain the best workers they need to benchmark pay and conditions with the rest of the world, especially Australia.
Of course, we may never be able to match what is offered overseas but more of our companies must strive to become globally competitive to “raise the bar” on our wages and salaries. New Zealanders are some of the most mobile people in the world and have proven they have no qualms about leaving New Zealand for greater opportunities
I am going to Australia because of the complete lack of job security and career options in New Zealand. Five years out of ten NZ has a recession and there is no sign that change is on the horizon.
Number one is because of the money but a close second is all the PC rubbish that goes on in this country. A particular annoyance is the prefrential treatment of Maori and the amount of tax dollars spend on Treaty settlements that would be better used elsewhere.
Our polititions have been way too sucessful in making their policy buying billionaire mates very rich. Unfortunately they forgot to leave some leftovers for the local peasants.
Yes me and my family are moving in october, we have A young family with two kids under the age of three and the only way we can give them the best in life with more opportunities is if we move over.
I have to say I love new zealand but with our pay rates staying the same and only climbing A little each year but the price of everything going up including mortgages, rates, rent and normal cost of living were only going around in A little rat race and only have the option to move.
We live in australia (qld), but cant wait to return to nz, the weather is awful, too humid and hot, in the winter its always very windy so we dont even get to use our boat, the fishing is crap also.
The aussies dont look after their elderly and nz’ers get no help unless you become a citizen (not even nz flood victims), we wish we had never wasted so much money and come over.Its not all its cracked up to be, cost of living very much the same as nz, fuel rising, food prices high, nz is still the best place to be.
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Comments
6 Comments on Why do so many Kiwis leave for Australia?
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muzza on
Sat, 12th Feb 2011 2:08 pm
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glenn Davis on
Fri, 19th Aug 2011 5:26 pm
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Rana Katene on
Tue, 18th Oct 2011 11:02 pm
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Avalon on
Wed, 19th Oct 2011 7:01 am
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Bill on
Wed, 9th Nov 2011 1:37 am
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Maggie on
Wed, 8th Feb 2012 5:34 pm
Yes Im a kiwi thinking of going to oz but in regards to thinking global about attracting talent, Kiwis dont do that well at school or at University compared to Immigrants and foreign students. My concern is kiwis have never been academics but have always used number 8 to succeed.
In today global world kiwis are not prepared or taught to survive in that context. I am struggling to fing work as a recent accountant graduate although there is a reccession on. Kiwis dont always look at the top students or the one with a zillion degrees to get a job thats because we had a culture that suited that. immigrants tend to look soley at qualifications and cognetive ability in which immigrants are superior to kiwis. Many kiwi boys are failing in education and risk being socially marginalised by the new global elite. Its sad that you have to be a straight a student with a degree to get a job. Through inhouse prices and rising costs and its a harsh world.
Im surprised that so many skilled migrants come here and how come new zealand was once a great nation built by upper working class farmers its truely bizzare how well aus/nz did and why skilled migrants find a country of uneducated anglos so appealing.
That said its tough for immigrants the face racism and social marginalisation plus they leave there families and many lose everything in moving here to this backwater.
Anyway enjoy your blog avalon and remember kiwis are not that bad we just feel insecure because we feel we dont have the skills to survive in a global world that judges people by status and degrees and jobs. New Zealand was not built on that yet its seen as a destination to educate your children on the cheap so they van be lawyers and doctors and marry in to top prestigous families.
We kiwis are just simple unambitious people and we are struggling to adapt to the sudden change thats all. I think we need to start by kiwis and immigrants having respect for each other and getting to know each other and have a few beer.
all the best
Muzza
Graduate who cant get a job but is working on it lol.
i’m living in australia and enjoying life , because i can afford it- i get a decent liveable take home wage ,unlike nz , i remember working 60-70 hour weeks back home just to survive , what ever happened to free education, i was always having to pay extra ? ,power,petrol,food these always went up ,& wages stayed the same- i just could not afford to live in my own country.
i work 55 hour week ,mon to fri with week-ends being family time , fantastic.
i take home 30-40 % more $ , oz is the best move i ever did- i’m a working class man.
i see no reason to come back to nz any time soon .
I love NZ its my home. I moved to Australia with my husband to chase the big bucks, the intention was always to return. I loved my life in NZ we lived in a bayside community on the North Shore of Auckland, kids in top schools, husband great job with big $$. Recession moved in and after 17 years with a company my husband was offered redundancy. Australia offered money, job security and a bright and prosperous future. However that soon turned sour when after 18 months the company went belly up! 6 months of uncertainty, unemployment and stress. We are still in Australia but the dream has gone …… Although our earning power has more than halfed Australia still offers more hope! We would love to go home but the employment opportunities are not there.
There is also no compulsory superannuation and getting old in NZ does not seem appealing. There are pros and cons with living in both countries but my heart with always be in NZ.
Rana,
Wow – I am so sorry to hear that 
Usually when I hear stories like yours its from immigrants who have come to New Zealand – not those who left for Australia. Again – it helps to show that no matter where you go – you can face the same problems.
I really hope things pick up for you. The recession WILL be over one day – and if you can get through this crap time financially in one piece (if a little battered) then once its over you will have the hard earned knowledge to do well in the good times.
I know that doesnt help right now – when the crap keeps hitting it’s hard not to be really hacked off.
Hxxx
We left for Qld 14 months ago, its been up and down work wise especially since the floods, depite this I won’t be returning in the near future.When the recession hit NZ I found things really tightened up in NZ it made me realise its vunerabillity of size and very small economy.
As an imigrant kiwi its not supposed to be easy, no one owes us anything, you just have to graft away like any other immigrant, just give it time, Australia has a lot to offer.
In a global market place a bit of size does help, my children have good options in front of them here, Australia has a tenacious apetite for growth and will grow at twice the rate of NZ.
I find Australians look forward as a nation, something to admire, they handle race relations with there indigenous people similar to what the USA and Canada have done . A country of extremes, droughts, floods its given them that battler mentality,
Kiwi’s are vocally harder on the Aussies than they are on us, we are more sensitive to criticism and find the need to puff our chests out and carry on, the Aussies just get on with it self assured.
This is not to say I don’t miss my country, I do deeply especially the land.
I have spent the better part of the last twenty years out of the country ( not OZ). When I return I can’t stand the ignorant, bully bosses and aggression in the ‘culture’. The political correctness is ludicrous. The taxation is ludicrous. The cost of living is ludicrous. The sexism is ugly. The t& C’s of employmnet are medieval. The people left in power are the leftovers and the bottom feeders: the professionals and skilled and educated are all overseas ( last time I checked it was one million of us) what a miserable, cold, and violent ….hole.
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