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-   -   Is $55,000 a good wage or not? (https://britishexpats.com/forum/australia-54/%2455-000-good-wage-not-722982/)

Kris_Rocks Jun 29th 2011 4:22 pm

Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
My husband has been offered a job in west Sydney as a motor mechanic - he is fully qualified with 23 years experience and they are offering $55,000 + 9% super, I am thinking this isnt really a very good wage especially in the sydney area am I right.
2 years ago he was offered a job in Perth for £60,000 + Super and they would ship us all out and sort out accom for 1st month and loan a car.
We couldnt take that position at the time because of our house not selling and family probs, however, I know the global economy has gone down but that much???

Is this about right or is my instinct right and this would not be enough to live on in Sydney area?

Weebie Jun 29th 2011 4:26 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
In short no....but plenty people do.

Pollyana Jun 29th 2011 4:28 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9465092)
My husband has been offered a job in west Sydney as a motor mechanic - he is fully qualified with 23 years experience and they are offering $55,000 + 9% super, I am thinking this isnt really a very good wage especially in the sydney area am I right.
2 years ago he was offered a job in Perth for £60,000 + Super and they would ship us all out and sort out accom for 1st month and loan a car.
We couldnt take that position at the time because of our house not selling and family probs, however, I know the global economy has gone down but that much???

Is this about right or is my instinct right and this would not be enough to live on in Sydney area?

Is it just you and your husband, or do you have kids too?
My initial instinct would be to say its certainly not a good wage for Sydney, which is expensive, especially if you have kids, but then there are people living on less. Not sure what the usual wage for a Sydney mechanic would be, I'm sure someone can fill that gap in at a more civilised hour (its 2.30am here!) but I sure wouldn't move across the world for $55k.

Kris_Rocks Jun 29th 2011 5:26 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
There is my husband myself and we have a nearly 4 year old.
In the UK my husband works and I work from home selling on ebay.
With child tax credits etc. we get by OK, we arent loaded but we lead an OK life I think.
I am an Australian citizen, was born there but came to UK when I was 3, I also got Australian citizenship for my son when he was born.
We wanted to move to Australia to give him a better quality of life really and unfortunately couldnt go a couple of years ago when we first had the opportunity but we are now able to seriously think about it now.
My husband put his toe in the job water and signed up with an agency specialising in Motor trade and this is the first thing that came back, within a week, but as I said I feel its a bit on the low side to decamp and be worse off than we are here.

Bermudashorts Jun 29th 2011 7:25 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
It is significantly below average wage in an expensive city. Do you manage on that now? Would you be able to bring over a lot of capital to assist with housing? If the answer to these questions is no then I would say stay put, this is a very low wage.

Kris_Rocks Jun 29th 2011 7:51 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
If any motor trade peeps read this - is this wage about what a skilled mechanic would expect? It seems low in general.

Beedubya Jun 29th 2011 7:53 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
It is very low for Sydney, you would find it a struggle believe me, I was earning less than that as a single person and it was hard going.............

paulandcelia Jun 29th 2011 8:06 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Bermudashorts (Post 9465527)
It is significantly below average wage in an expensive city. Do you manage on that now? Would you be able to bring over a lot of capital to assist with housing? If the answer to these questions is no then I would say stay put, this is a very low wage.

So what is the current average wage for australia?
I thought it was about $55K

Bermudashorts Jun 29th 2011 8:19 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by paulandcelia (Post 9465616)
So what is the current average wage for australia?
I thought it was about $55K

I believe it is just under 70k.

paulandcelia Jun 29th 2011 9:07 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
According to this automotive average 68,366

http://content.mycareer.com.au/salary-centre/

Admittedly probably not the most reliable source but it can give a pointer in the right direction

quoll Jun 29th 2011 9:19 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Talking to our local mechanic, in ACT, which generally has higher average wages $55k would be about average but it could go up to $70k if someone were very experienced and had special skills that were in demand.

I dont think I would be getting too excited about $55k -I think that would be a real struggle especially in an expensive place like Sydney where you are likely to spent around $25k pa on your rental before you even begin.

macy Jun 29th 2011 10:27 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9465092)
My husband has been offered a job in west Sydney as a motor mechanic - he is fully qualified with 23 years experience and they are offering $55,000 + 9% super, I am thinking this isnt really a very good wage especially in the sydney area am I right.
2 years ago he was offered a job in Perth for £60,000 + Super and they would ship us all out and sort out accom for 1st month and loan a car.
We couldnt take that position at the time because of our house not selling and family probs, however, I know the global economy has gone down but that much???

Is this about right or is my instinct right and this would not be enough to live on in Sydney area?


I wouldn't even consider it, we did it tough for the first year we were over and honestly it was hard, really hard, never been so poor......

Jen1977ni Jun 29th 2011 10:45 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Do you intend to work full-time too, because if you were prepared to, then it might be slightly more manageable?! Just a thought...

steen1976 Jun 29th 2011 10:55 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Jen1977ni (Post 9465897)
Do you intend to work full-time too, because if you were prepared to, then it might be slightly more manageable?! Just a thought...

Yes I would think another wage would be required as it would be tough coming from the UK to live on that. But out west you could probably get a unit for about $300 a week so accommodation no where near as bad as closer to the CBD/beaches.

Kris_Rocks Jun 29th 2011 11:02 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
I would consider a return to work when my son started school but I dont really want to until then, even more so after a move of that magnitude, I wouldnt then want to place him with any form of care other than my own or family when he has never done it before too other than playschool - kind of goes against my personal beliefs anyway too. However at the moment I earn more money in my pocket than I would working full time being self employed doing what I do and I cant see that I couldnt start the same up again over in Oz its just not guaranteed.

I think my suspicion is right that it is a bad offer - I think that for a 40 year old with good qualifications and 23 years experience within a peugeot dealership is worth more than that.

DadAgain Jun 29th 2011 11:19 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Couple of points here:

- $55k sounds like a pretty shit wage to try and look after an entire family (I'm assuming the ebay business doesnt bring in a fortune)- even in western Sydney.

- 23 years experience is a LOT

- Australians dont trust foreign experrience.

Its quite possible that after working for a while your husbands skills and experience might help him to progress quickly - but as a 'new starter' to the country he's almost certainly going to have to start being paid a poor wage.

This is not unusual for migrants who often find it very frustrating to have their skills recognised by very bureacratic recruitment regimes that place ridiculous significance to locally gained qualifications and certifications and under-rate the value of internationally gained experience.

xzibit Jun 29th 2011 11:20 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
$55k is about 25,000 pounds, working on a 2.2 conversion.

Is your husband on more than 25k in the UK? Bear in mind though, Sydney is very expensive. You could probably cope on $55k in Adelaide, as rents are far cheaper.

mulben Jun 30th 2011 12:28 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9465918)

I think that for a 40 year old with good qualifications and 23 years experience within a peugeot dealership is worth more than that.

Is he a qualified diesel mechanic .

Different prospects if he is .

HelenTD Jun 30th 2011 2:03 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Doing a quick search for motor mechanics, there appear to be dozens of jobs at higher salaries or hourly rates in several cities that are cheaper than Sydney. Perhaps don't bother with this particular agency you have been in contact with and apply directly or via www.seek.com.au; www.simplyhired.com.au and other websites. WA has lots of automotive trade jobs, especially for diesel mechanics. Some of the ads give the opportunity to train for diesel and heavy vehicles work.

Gibbo Jun 30th 2011 3:27 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9465092)
My husband has been offered a job in west Sydney as a motor mechanic - he is fully qualified with 23 years experience and they are offering $55,000 + 9% super, I am thinking this isnt really a very good wage especially in the sydney area am I right.
2 years ago he was offered a job in Perth for £60,000 + Super and they would ship us all out and sort out accom for 1st month and loan a car.
We couldnt take that position at the time because of our house not selling and family probs, however, I know the global economy has gone down but that much???

Is this about right or is my instinct right and this would not be enough to live on in Sydney area?

Motor mechanic is the lowest paid trade in NSW. One of my sons is in that trade and when he was on wages he had a very low wage in comparison with other trades. He has been in business for himself for a number of years now and never seems to be short of money!
So, if you can cope with the low wage to start with, there is potential for improvement. Good mechanics are hard to find, in some areas I believe.

Just googled motor mechanic jobs Sydney and there are a lot. Might be worth a try.

simo71 Jun 30th 2011 4:16 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Hi,if I knew what I know know I wouldn't have moved!
My husband earns $70,000 and we struggle on that.
Sydney is VERY expensive.
In London we were living(2 adults and a child) on a £32,000 wage and like you I use to sell a little bit on Ebay and Amazon (that use to bring in about £100/150 extra p.m.).
We are moving back to London as soon as we can,yes the weather is warmer here but we can have a better standard of living in London.
Don't move for $55,000.

xzibit Jun 30th 2011 4:32 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by simo71 (Post 9466226)
Hi,if I knew what I know know I wouldn't have moved!
My husband earns $70,000 and we struggle on that.
Sydney is VERY expensive.
In London we were living(2 adults and a child) on a £32,000 wage and like you I use to sell a little bit on Ebay and Amazon (that use to bring in about £100/150 extra p.m.).
We are moving back to London as soon as we can,yes the weather is warmer here but we can have a better standard of living in London.
Don't move for $55,000.

Ditto!

I was far better off in the UK. I should technically be on about the same wage here (at a rate of 2.2), but I had far far far more disposable income in the UK.

Although I'm not moving back. Even though I have less money to play with here, I do far more at the weekends, and eat out a lot more. It's not all about money, but it's not worth struggling either. It all depends on individual lifestyle.

But $55k single wage to support a family in Sydney? No way!!!

Weebie Jun 30th 2011 5:15 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
You need two incomes to survive in Australia anyway let alone 55k.

55k sounds about right for a mechanic. I know some people are earning bigger incomes on minesites but it's completely different situation.

Pollyana Jun 30th 2011 5:24 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9465918)
I would consider a return to work when my son started school but I dont really want to until then, even more so after a move of that magnitude, I wouldnt then want to place him with any form of care other than my own or family when he has never done it before too other than playschool - kind of goes against my personal beliefs anyway too. However at the moment I earn more money in my pocket than I would working full time being self employed doing what I do and I cant see that I couldnt start the same up again over in Oz its just not guaranteed.

I think my suspicion is right that it is a bad offer - I think that for a 40 year old with good qualifications and 23 years experience within a peugeot dealership is worth more than that.

Re your own income - its possible that you would be able to make a bit on ebay like you do now, but the whole internet shopping idea is far less prevalent here. Aus doesn't have its own Amazon site - although use of the US and UK ones is growing - and ebay itself isn't as widely known or used as back home so while you probably could supplement your income that way it might not be quite as lucrative.

jad n rich Jun 30th 2011 5:31 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Your main reason for moving is 'better quality of life' .

Unfortunately 55k in sydney will give you a rubbish standard of life.

Even if you had rent of $450 a week ( very low for Sydney ) that's way over half your wage on rent alone.

HelenTD Jun 30th 2011 5:34 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by jad n rich (Post 9466284)
Your main reason for moving is 'better quality of life' .

Unfortunately 55k in sydney will give you a rubbish standard of life.

Even if you had rent of $450 a week ( very low for Sydney ) that's way over half your wage on rent alone.

Wouldn't they be entitled to rental assistance and various family payments from Centrelink? Don't know if I'd want to live in an area of Sydney with cheap rents or in a unit with a child, though, what are the schools like there?

jad n rich Jun 30th 2011 5:38 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by HelenTD (Post 9466286)
Wouldn't they be entitled to rental assistance and various family payments from Centrelink? Don't know if I'd want to live in an area of Sydney with cheap rents or in a unit with a child, though, what are the schools like there?

Possibly, depends on visa.

But I wouldn't like to rely on centerlink benefits, simply because if you earn more later in the year, have investments UK or OZ, earnt in this tax year in the UK you have to pay it back. And Centerlink and tax dept here are very good at info sharing, so they do find out.

Rudi Jun 30th 2011 8:06 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Weebie (Post 9466270)
You need two incomes to survive in Australia anyway let alone 55k.

55k sounds about right for a mechanic. I know some people are earning bigger incomes on minesites but it's completely different situation.

Yawn Yawn

You DO NOT need two incomes to survive in Australia.

However, I agree $55k is a very low wage and it would be VERY hard to survive on that sort of money in Sydney. I think your quality of life would be very low. So much of your salary would go on rent, tht you would have little left over for anything other than basic food and living costs.

Love

Rudi
x

Hebe Jun 30th 2011 8:20 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
The answer for me would be no. However, what do you manage on in the UK? Also once here and working it is then easier to get another job. You have to bear in mind that your husband has no Australian experience which can count for a lot. If he is good then I am sure that he will be able to sort something else out within a short period of time.

Kris_Rocks Jun 30th 2011 9:51 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by xzibit (Post 9465950)
$55k is about 25,000 pounds, working on a 2.2 conversion.

Is your husband on more than 25k in the UK? Bear in mind though, Sydney is very expensive. You could probably cope on $55k in Adelaide, as rents are far cheaper.

Yes he earns more than that here.

Kris_Rocks Jun 30th 2011 9:58 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Pollyana (Post 9466278)
Re your own income - its possible that you would be able to make a bit on ebay like you do now, but the whole internet shopping idea is far less prevalent here. Aus doesn't have its own Amazon site - although use of the US and UK ones is growing - and ebay itself isn't as widely known or used as back home so while you probably could supplement your income that way it might not be quite as lucrative.

Oddly - Australia is my biggest international ship to location - I often marvel at the prices people will pay for postage for something as low value as £1.99 here.
I was wondering if there a big gap in the market is the reason in which case I was thinking I could explore the possibility of doing more import and wholesale in Oz which I also do here. Before I had my son I had 2 shops as well as web shop and ebay store - but this is obviously something I am not counting on which is why I want to be sure we could get by on my husbands wages then anything I can do is a bonus.

Kris_Rocks Jun 30th 2011 10:03 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by HelenTD (Post 9466286)
Wouldn't they be entitled to rental assistance and various family payments from Centrelink? Don't know if I'd want to live in an area of Sydney with cheap rents or in a unit with a child, though, what are the schools like there?

This is also something I havent totally explored, because i'm (not sure but) technically I wouldnt be entering Australia on my husbands Visa and myself and son being Australian citizens dont know how that impacts on benefits or entitlements etc. and if the same restrictions would apply.
Again its something I have ruled out of the equation that way if we could get anything it would be a bonus.

Kris_Rocks Jun 30th 2011 10:05 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by HelenTD (Post 9466121)
Doing a quick search for motor mechanics, there appear to be dozens of jobs at higher salaries or hourly rates in several cities that are cheaper than Sydney. Perhaps don't bother with this particular agency you have been in contact with and apply directly or via www.seek.com.au; www.simplyhired.com.au and other websites. WA has lots of automotive trade jobs, especially for diesel mechanics. Some of the ads give the opportunity to train for diesel and heavy vehicles work.

Thats what lead me to think it was a poor offer really - thanks for links will check them out

Kris_Rocks Jun 30th 2011 10:13 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Hebe (Post 9466470)
The answer for me would be no. However, what do you manage on in the UK? Also once here and working it is then easier to get another job. You have to bear in mind that your husband has no Australian experience which can count for a lot. If he is good then I am sure that he will be able to sort something else out within a short period of time.

Thats the thing - do we just use it as a way in?
Once there (again havent checked it out completely) but I was thinking we could then apply for a spouses Visa for my husband which if he had a job etc. would be, in my head, quicker and cheaper and more likely to succeed, feel free to correct me if I am way out there, than applying for one in the UK.
From what I have read so far it seems that as we have been married for 11 years and have a child together he could skip through the temp one to the perm one without the wait.

At the end of the day we are literally only 2 weeks into looking at this again and It looks like the jobs are out there think we should just give this one a thanks but no thanks unless you can offer a lot more and then go from there

Bermudashorts Jun 30th 2011 10:32 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9466654)
Thats the thing - do we just use it as a way in?
Once there (again havent checked it out completely) but I was thinking we could then apply for a spouses Visa for my husband which if he had a job etc. would be, in my head, quicker and cheaper and more likely to succeed, feel free to correct me if I am way out there, than applying for one in the UK.
From what I have read so far it seems that as we have been married for 11 years and have a child together he could skip through the temp one to the perm one without the wait.

You are way out there. If you apply for a partner visa from Australia it is slower and more expensive. ;)

Also if you are applying from Australia, then what visa would your husband go over on in the first place? He needs a visa to get on the plane.

fish.01 Jun 30th 2011 10:40 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Average total wage for males working full time is approx $75,000 (Australia wide)

hollykimalan Jun 30th 2011 11:07 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 
Google "hasting Deering".
They are a good in-road to the Mines...well they are in Mackay.
Better money too....

Kris_Rocks Jun 30th 2011 11:53 am

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Bermudashorts (Post 9466688)
You are way out there. If you apply for a partner visa from Australia it is slower and more expensive. ;)

Also if you are applying from Australia, then what visa would your husband go over on in the first place? He needs a visa to get on the plane.

Blimey it is more expensive - and its gone up since last time I looked!!! - Scratch that then.

We were hoping to go via an emloyer sponsored route to get in because we are no longer planning on selling our house and dont have the excess funds to do the whole lot ourselves without a job to go to.
Once there we could explore other options.

Pollyana Jun 30th 2011 12:16 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9466626)
Oddly - Australia is my biggest international ship to location - I often marvel at the prices people will pay for postage for something as low value as £1.99 here.
I was wondering if there a big gap in the market is the reason in which case I was thinking I could explore the possibility of doing more import and wholesale in Oz which I also do here. Before I had my son I had 2 shops as well as web shop and ebay store - but this is obviously something I am not counting on which is why I want to be sure we could get by on my husbands wages then anything I can do is a bonus.

I buy a lot from ebay UK - cos the prices even with postage work out more reasonable, and cos in a lot of cases there is just more available from the UK - Aus is just a long way behind with the internet shopping-wise.

Pollyana Jun 30th 2011 12:22 pm

Re: Is $55,000 a good wage or not?
 

Originally Posted by Kris_Rocks (Post 9466806)
Blimey it is more expensive - and its gone up since last time I looked!!! - Scratch that then.

We were hoping to go via an emloyer sponsored route to get in because we are no longer planning on selling our house and dont have the excess funds to do the whole lot ourselves without a job to go to.
Once there we could explore other options.

If you've been married more than two years - with a child - then your husband would get PR straight away, as you said earlier. Having a job is unlikely to make a difference really, though it does show that there is work for him. Quicker, easier and cheaper to apply for a Spouse Visa in the UK - don't risk coming here with him on a tourist visa and then applying here.
Also, if he comes on a tourist visa he then can't work till the Spouse Visa is granted. If the job are offering to sponsor him (eg on a 457) then he could come on that and apply for the Spouse Visa onshore, from which point he wouldn't be tied to that employer.


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