Hi everyone, I'm new to this so bare with me.

I am looking general advice, knowledge and facts about our jobs etc if we were to make the move down under. We would prefer to move near Sydney as I have family on the northern beaches.

I am a registered nurse here in Northern Ireland, I have been a nurse for almost 4 years. I currently work on an ENT (ear, nose and throat) and Urology surgical ward in my local hospital. I have previous experience on medical wards too. I would like help with the following:

1. Average pay
2. Who to contact in regards to more advice
3. What do I have to do to get registered for Oz
4. How much tax would I pay depending on what I earn?
5. Where is the work
6. Where to look for jobs
7. What agency's to consider
8. Advantages of working as a nurse in Oz compared to UK

General help is greatly appreciated.

My partner works as a CNC machinist within the aerospace industry and has been doing this for 3 years.

1. What would his average pay be
2. Is there plenty of work
3. What shift options are there
4. Where to look for jobs

Many thanks, Rachel.

Welcome to BE

First thing is 'are you degree or Diploma trained' it seems that Australia requires nurses from the UK to be degree trained. You then need to look at APHRA to get registration to work there. Others will be able to answer the rest of your questions.

I'm trained to a degree level.

You've flagged up something I don't really understand. What is the difference in a registered nurse and an enrolled nurse? Is this just the degree and diploma level difference?

Hi there, I'm a CNC machinist and I moved over last year. Initially we wanted to move to Newcastle but the mining work dried up so there were no jobs for me up that way by the time we got here. Did a few interviews around Sydney and Melbourne when I arrived and settled for Melbourne. Didn't have any problem finding work, I did nine interviews and was offered every job. Not all companies were overly busy though and I hear some places are pretty quiet. Perth I would imagine would be more oil and gas based so maybe not so much opportunities for work over that way.

As for salary you're looking at $30-32 per hour some places may offer more some less but generally that's the going rate. As for shift work afternoon shift is pretty common I've never come across nightshift like there was in the UK

Given that aussie jobs advertise annual wages, hourly wage won't be much good unless you can give an idea of a weekly, fortnightly or monthly wage?

In my line of work it's pretty common to see the hourly rate advertised. Overtime can vary between different companies and make a huge difference to overall salary. But if you need it basic salary around $60-65k per annum

For more detailed Nursing help you should have a look at our Nursing Forum. It's worldwide but there's a lot of Aus nurses on there who can help.

I've only ever worked hourly once in my life but have hired a few on hourly rates.

In my head $50 ph = $100k pa but I'm sure that's a simplistic take on it.