JAMFC

Hi, can you do things like ironing/cleaning/mowing - home services?
I know people in my area use these sort of services a lot - most families with 2 working parents out source as much as possible.

How about housekeeper/nanny, dropping kids to school in the morning, picking up from school, taking to after school activities, preparing dinner. I don't think age would be seen as an issue, maybe a bonus, as a 'nana-type' figure.

You would need a Positive Notice Blue Card to work with children and a first aid certificate would be useful too.

You could put signs up at local shops etc...

jackieh23

JAMFC's is a great suggestion.

However, if you have already been tactfully requested to move sooner rather than later, have you considered housesitting? It will mean you are in your own space (sort of), no cost of rent and you can continue to look for work....

Joy.Please

I find Neil's taxi driving suggestion the best.

Now here's some pension eligibility information.

1) Canada requires 20 years residence for Old Age Pension. So, you're eligible for Canadian Old Age Pension. Find out if you can get it in Australia.
2) Australia recognizes Canadian residence for it's own Old Age Pension. So, your 20 years in Canada make you eligible for Australian Old Age Pension at age 64.5 years. Refer below link.

http://www.fahcsia.gov.au/about-fahc...ed-questions#5

The hitch here is the CPV condition of no Centrelink support. So, whether the Australia-Canada social security agreement takes precedence over CPV conditions is the question. I think it does because international agreements should take precedence over national laws.

This legalese may not be of much help. But I think you should speak to Centrelink about this Social Security agreement between Australia and Canada and let them know that you're eligible for Old Age Pension in Australia.


Joy

Shard

Would working in retail be a possibility for you ? In the UK these days you are just as likely to see a senior on the tills at Waitrose as you are a young person. Not sure if Australia has the same age-positive movement in retail, but there might be some forward thinking retail groups (like John Lewis, B&Q, Home Depot) that are non ageist?

jillany

I applied for my Canadian Pension before I left Canada and am still waiting to hear from them. I was told it takes six months to process.

Taxi cab drivers in heavily populated areas, not sure about out in the boondocks, now have to have RTO training before they can drive a cab.

I found that info on Licensing News dated today but the new rules came out in Jan 2011.

It seems nothing is simple anymore. What we used to do before all needs a special license to perform now.

brissybee

Here is a link to a website which specialises in posting jobs for mature aged workers.

http://www.olderworkers.com.au/

Also, you might get something through Dial an Angel.

http://www.dialanangel.com/

Also, you might consider (maybe just temporary) work in a factory or call centre. Also, given this is an ageist society, have you done all you can to look as employable and presentable as possible? It's easy to get bogged down after a while of looking.

Until you find something that pays, why not become a volunteer at an Op shop (great bargains!) or Meals on Wheels? You'll meet people (possibly even to share a house with), get work experience in different fields and you'll get references to take to employers.

Stay positive. Good Luck.

spouse of scouse

Seniors Centres and aged care facilities (respite centres, low band care homes, community care agencies) might be worth a try. I see a lot of older workers in these facilities in jobs such as reception, running activities, social support (visiting, shopping, light housework). SEEK seems to have a lot of jobs in Brisbane in this field of work.

I don't know your circumstances jillany, but on the face of it I think your daughter's being unreasonable. If she sponsored you, she'd have been aware of her responsibility to provide you with support, including accommodation and financial, for two years. To start edging you out after only two months, when you haven't even found work yet, sounds incredibly mean to me

sydlee

Hi,

welcome to Australia and good luck with settling down.

I haven't posted on here before but reading your thread I felt I had to as I feel you need a positive story.

My father in law moved here (Sydney) from England two years ago on the same visa as you.

He was also keen to work as he only has a very modest pension and little in savings after paying for his visa. He encountered the same issues - Centrelink unable to help etc.

What we did was advertised him on Gumtree!

His previously experience was mainly "unskilled" having run his own hardware store before and then working as a handyman.

The ad was along the lines of "Semi-retired English gent looking for part time handyman work".

We had a few enquiries and within a week he had secured a job working three days a weeks in a retirement village undertaking duties for the strata. He loves it as his role is mainly outdoors, including gardening and other odd jobs such as painting. He is a fit and active 67 year old.

He was living with us but the job gave him enough income to enable him to rent a one bed apartment near the beach. It's small but he loves it as he can see the ocean.

Good luck with securing a job and settling near your family.

Mike at Taree

I recently retired at your age - I'm a carer and could only work part time and worked two days a week at the Stellar/Vodafone call centre in Brisbane, for 9 years. It's inbound work doing mostly stuff like directory assistance for mobile users, taking pager messages after hours (pagers are still huge business in Australia, particularly after hours work. Who do you think answers the phone when you ring a 1300 number after hours? It normally is an after hours contract call centre such as Stellar). Edit: for example they run the QLD Translink call centre. When you ring Translink you are talking to Stellar.

Serco is also another company worth approaching, they do similar tasks and lots of other stuff like contract cleaning. Like Stellar, Serco is the biggest company you never heard of.

They often employ older workers if they have good timekeeping, typing and phone manner. A bit of a Pommy accent doesn't hurt you.


Get registered with Seek.com and Stellar and other such providers often advertise. Pay is a bit ordinary but you can clear $900 a week full time, better than Centrelink. That employment agency listed above would probably have their details. I don't have any current numbers unfortunately as they don't have a "public" dial in number.

Zen10

No more than any other Anglophone society.

Zen10

Agree with all of this. CPV absolutely is a visa for the wealthy only now, and ageism is rife, disgraceful, and myopic.

Hino

Thanks for sharing your FIL's story

A positive attitude is a wonderful thing, may he continue to do well

sarahmcn

Hi jillany,
Sorry to hear that you are having such a hard time finding work. Which part of Brisbane are you based in?

BadgeIsBack

Agreed - Bunnings like older people, not necessarily teens - and lots of handymen and gardeners are often older.

To the OP - don't talk about 'the computer' - just say you have IT or computer skills and list the apps you can use - but remember lots of people can use a basic list so if they were part of an achievement, list some and then state how you have used them.

spouse of scouse

Badge's post got me thinking. Do you have a resume/CV, Jillany? A well written, concise CV can be the difference between getting an interview or not, particularly in office/admin/accounts environments. Although the basic details of your experience will be the same, you can 'tailor' your CV to the job you're applying for - for example, for a book keeping job you'd emphasise the financial management aspects of your work in retail and in running your B&B. You have a vast amount of experience, but you need to sell yourself.

A few things that Australian employers don't want or need to see on your CV
Your date of birth
Your hobbies/how you spend your leisure time
Your marital status
Other personal information such as details about children

A CV should contain:

Personal details - your name, address, contact number

Education - At 64, you don't need to go into details of where you went to school, grades etc, just list your highest educational qualification, including any courses that you've obtained a certificate for (such as your book keeping course).

Work experience - just your 'main' jobs as an adult, no need to put down the part-time job in a shop at 16

Referrees - I realize this may be a difficult one for you as you're in a new country, but if you have anyone who can speak from a professional viewpoint (such as a previous supervisor) about your abilities and skills, this is the place to list them, including their name, company (if applicable) and their contact telephone number. Don't worry about the contact numbers being overseas, it's a portable workforce these days.
Don't include character references, ie a letter from your neighbour Joe Bloggs saying what a terrific, honest etc person you are - not only are these discounted by employers, they make you look unprofessional and naïve.

Now that I've written all that (sorry, got a bit carried away!) you probably already have a terrific CV and I'm teaching you how to suck eggs! But someone might find it a bit of use. Let us know how you get on