Scottyboy 73

Hi all, i am currently in Scotland and just waiting on our house selling, my wife and i and the kids all have PR skilled 189 visas, although my wife is a nurse and employment not an issue for her where as i am struggling to find work and that is before we even set in Canberra, i have 17 years welding experience within the quarry and shipping industry and currently a rail track technician/ track welder with the government for 10 years, i know rail work is very scarce in Canberra and resorting back to welding isn't something im keen on going back to although i will go back to my trade if i need to, thing is ive applied for many jobs in welding and various other jobs i have amounts of experience in the car trade repairs, selling ect and carpentry skills and i would consider a complete career change as im quite handy in many sectors, i just cant ever seem to get an acknowledgement let alone a reply from anyone i send my CV away to, id like to have at least some sort of confidence that theirs jobs in Canberra! indeed and many other sites i am on seem to advertise all these jobs but are these for real?? i have family in Canberra and visited many times and cant wait to settle here but my worries are the job market isn't as good as what its supposed to be.
i know about the light rail project and that it has just started and hopefully this comes with many jobs also, this is where id want to continue my career in this sector as its something i have worked hard at and climbed the ladder from day one, so just looking for some honest answers from expats that maybe know my occupation and position. (mostly my concerns)
thanks all
Scott

Dorothy

You're very unlikely to find work from overseas. Once you get here you can probably find something but before then I would say your chances are pretty slim.

Are you sure about your wife's being able to find work as a nurse easily? Nursing jobs are not as plentiful as they used to be in Australia.

Scottyboy 73

Hi, my wife already has employment with the health sector. I agree with being overseas and trying to find a job I'm just trying to see if anyone from overseas once there actually finds employment, unless your working for ACT government which my wife will be it's looking hard for myself.
I've read on many posts about how hard it is for overseas workers to gain employment, i have been looking and emailing company's basically for feedback more than anything but out of 34 emails sent with my cv and cover letter attached I've had one reply basically wishing me good luck! So any real life stories is what I'm looking for.thanks for replying

Bermudashorts

Well the regulars on the forum are all in, or have been in Australia, and we all found work. Very few people will be able to provoke even a response when they are overseas though, never mind secure a job so I wouldn't be put off by your lack of responses so far.

I would be a bit worried about Canberra though, lots of government jobs for citizens only. I have no idea about light rail project. It isn't somewhere that migrants commonly go to, so might not be a lot of people in that exact situation. Paulry is a regular that went to Canberra so perhaps he will see the thread and respond.

quoll

You won't get a job in Canberra unless you are there realistically and your skill set doesn't seem to be one which might be in high demand I would have thought. However, that said, you should pick up something when you arrive (but they reckon on being able to support yourselves for 6 months without work) - our family have always managed to find work of some description when we have needed it but whether "work" (as opposed to career) will be enough to keep the Wolf from the door when costs there are pretty high is anyone's guess. It rather depends on what you are prepared to put your hands to

Have you thought about renting out your house, taking career breaks and keeping a bit of a safety net just in case?

moneypenny20

Now in your own thread.