Betty Boot

Well we are 2 weeks away from completing on our house sale, notice handed in on both jobs, one of the cars is going tomorrow and someone looking at the other this weekend then boom, the job offer that my husband had in writing from a large mining company has been retracted I know people have been saying the mining boom is coming to an end and things are looking grim but you kind of think it cant be that bad They have phoned him this morning saying they have put a job freeze in place and made approx. 1000 people redundant, so things really aren't looking too good. Thing is what the heck do we do now? Do we pull out of the house sale, ask for my job back, my husband contracts so he could look for another contract, dont sell the car tomorrow - I am so confused right now. We were going to go before the job offer so that was an added bonus, but are things really that grim that my husband will struggle to find decent paid work to support us all if the large companies are struggling? I'm not sure we should risk everything we have here in the hope he may get a job. By the way he is a SQL Dba so if anyone has a feeling for the job market in his area an advise would be gratefully recieved. This immigration malarky may just do me in

Pit Bull.

Can't you complete on your house and go into a rental and try to get a job for your husband, the word is that mining is starting to struggle, but what's work like for your hubby long term in the UK. Hope it goes ok.

Betty Boot

Thanks Pit Bull. Yes I think we still need to go and just look for work on arrival as planned. He contracts here in UK and although has never been out of work it did look at one point he would have to work overseas as contracts are thin on the ground, I guess it may be looking the same in Perth but hopefully he will get something. Just scary that Australia is now talking of recessions

Pit Bull.

Hi Betty

It's very scary just thinking about emigrating full stop, we hope to get work prior to going, but it's not going to be easy, but Perth has the lowest unemployment in Australia, so hopefully it will work out. Best of luck.

bingobob777

how long can you afford to live here for without work?

Chortlepuss

I was never out of work in the UK - Over 20 years of IT. Been here (Brisbane) for 5 years plus - it's very different - casualised, insecure and largely based on the personal connections you have - good money if and when you can get work. Right now, I'd be bringing across living expenses to see me to Feb 2013 just in case the current slowdown continues. I would never advise anyone gainfully employed in the UK to give up their job to chance it in Australia unless they have a great job offer here, or are willing to take the risk that they may not find work. If it wasn't for my family, I'd be coming back to find work (PM/BA) as there are so many more opportunities for my skills in the South East UK

Zen10

What's your visa status? Are you able to wait while you find more work in Australia, while continuing to live and work in the UK or do you have a deadline? The mining industry will be facing a slowdown now, as I and others have argued for some time, due to the slowdown in Asia which is not insignificant. I believe even Singapore might now be in technical recession and Japanese exports of construction industry hardware to China are down massively this year, indicating slowdown but certain Australian sectors such as gas will be stronger than others.

jad n rich

Sorry to hear of your horrible situation

Australia is just another country, why wouldnt it get a recession too?

The signs have been here for a while but disguised by the aussie way of talking things up, and a fair bit of she'll be right mate.

The job market right now does seem driven by people being put off not on, and I would say that is OZ wide. We know a lot of guys who left construction to go to the mines, a lot now are back in town looking for building work, which is hardly easy to find either.

However it is who you know, my 18 year old has just got a rare as hens teeth electricians apprenticeship, due to our contacts. The job went out first in a ad, over 200 kids applied. As soon as we found out we knew the electrician it was do a few days work experience and your in 'mate'.

Hard times. Funny thing is the 15 year old is looking for part time work, nobody hiring casual kids even, but saw a new one in local supermarket, said HI how did you get in..... 'Mum' works here....

If you still have jobs there, can you pull out of house sale, I mean under the circumstances most people would have to understand.

Or can you support the family here till work does come up, which in the current economic situation could be how long??

Thank heaven you found out the job fell through before you arrived I have head of it happening to people a couple of months after arrival in Canada

Good luck with what you decide

quoll

How much money do you have to burn? Personally I wouldn't be moving unless I had a cast iron job offer far better than the conditions I had in UK - bird in the hand and all that. Looks to me like a lucky escape - at least you know how things are now and can make active choices rather than arriving and finding yourself with no job and rapidly dwindling savings. If you have enough in the bank that you can afford not to work for 6 months then you might be ok and if you get employment within that time then that's a bonus.

daunted

Are you both prepared to work anywhere/do anything? Mcdonalds/supermarkets? If so then consider still coming and doing it tough for a while...if not stay put in the UK and wait til things pick up

ShoreyM

It depends how much you want to be here.
We both gave up good jobs to come here and I didn't work for a while ( choice) but my husband (electrician) did all sorts of horrible jobs while waiting to get his licence. It took 18 months in the end (long story-won't bore you with the details) but he stuck at it, working long hours in really hard in dangerous environments just to get money coming in. We really wanted it to work out for us though, so we tried hard. Some things are still difficult but we love it here.

jad n rich

With respect you cant fall back on that anymore. A lot of the big retailers and supermarkets are NOT hiring right now. Even when they were it could be 4 interviews to push trolleys

Even if you get in its on casua. I know one massive OZ retailer has its casuals on 2 hours a month and on call, only IF 3 THREE people get sick they will call in one casual.

Its been like that since easter now, my son worked there as a school casual, they had notices in the staff room about food banks etc. This is a BIG aussie giant retailer who we all shop at , that policy was all States except Darwin NT.

Amazulu

What does your husband do? Do you have PR?

Some mining companies are cutting back (FMG, BHPB), others are still recruiting (Rio, Roy Hill). Plenty of mine construction work going on - big backlog of projects that will dry up in a few years but not yet. Some EPCMs cutting back (FAST, WP), some expanding (Calibre, Monadelphous). Lots of gas work ongoing (Gorgon, Inpex), Wheatstone design just about to start - massive projects out to at least 2015/6. A very mixed bag, but decent guys will find work. It can be all about contacts in a market like this though - as it is in the UK.

Whether you should move out at the moment is up to you and I would never advise you either way.

Good luck.

Betty Boot

Thanks - yes we are citizens. My husband is a SQL dba and never been out of work here or Australia. The job he got was with FMG and we believed he did well to get it with a telephone interview over others who were interviewing face to face (shame it wasnt to be) So hard to decide whether to risk it, hopefully like you say decent guys find work and he does know a few people in Perth so that may help?

Just off to have a look for that crystal ball of mine

Thanks for the advice guys.

Amazulu

I work for Rio (in a roundabout way) and can tell you for a fact that they are still recruiting heavily.

FMG is a mess (but saying that, I know guys who are still there and are very busy). I've worked for Andrew Forrest and like him a lot but he's made a rod for his own back unfortunately. Them's the breaks.