sdunx

The article on the homepage of this site is very, very misleading. After living in Australia for 15 years and recently returning to the UK I implore people moving to Australia to seek a 'warts and all' view. Many of these articles are written by people who have a vested interest in getting you interested. Some of the price comparisons for instance are definitely not reflective of what I've found!

My advice is don't get sucked in by glossy sales pitches, pictures of beaches etc etc Australia is not a modern day utopia and has its share of problems and challenges. Seek out dissenting opinions to give you a true picture, after all its a very big move.

Also if you decide to go don't capitulate to homesickness after a few months, stick it out regardless and treat it as the adventure it is, aim to do at least two years and then re-assess.

rabsody

I couldn't agree more.

What a load of cobblers! It just gives people false, unrealistic hopes. There are plenty of positive things about Australia of course, but to say jobs are better paid, cost of living is soooooo much lower, working hours are less and alluding to less crime is just blatantly false.

Apart from that, how are you Stu?!

philnorris

It also depends on your expectations etc, I think way to many people go out there thinking all their troubles will go away.

They wont, you still have to work, pay bills, pay taxes and still get stressed.

I know for me, both me and my partner are giving up good jobs to go out there and start from scratch. I am fully aware of the risks.

Living costs are a matter of personal preference, both myself and friends I have out in OZ feel they are paying less in the way of bills etc than they did in the UK. They have also landed better paying jobs than what they had in the UK, but like I said its a gamble and you just never know what your going to end up with. Yet I see so many people saying they earn less, or its costing to much to live there, I do feel that people need to really investigate living costs vs their expectations.

Me for one I dont like to whinge, if I cant find work or find the price of petrol to expensive etc I cant complain, its my own fault then for not finding out these things before I left for a new country.

Whats the term again 'Whinging Pom' ? I wonder why we got coined with that phrase, I hate it.

Sue

So why not write one yourself? We are always looking for members to write about their new lives abroad. If you want to share how its been for you that would be great. There are many articles in the article section written by other BE members. After all you can't beat reading about peoples first-hand experiences, its a great way to get a "feel" for things.

rabsody

A good post there Phil I think you hit the nail on the head with the above. Articles like the one we're discussing encourage people to think that all their troubles will go away by creating a false "reality". People like yourself who are a bit more realistic are more likely to last the distance IMO. Good luck with it all.

The O'Neills

You guys have to remember that the cost of living in the UK has gone through the roof in the last 12 months. The weather seems to be getting worse every year, and crime seems to be on the up (I don't know the actual figures, but it seems that every time I turn on the news lately, some poor young soul has been shot, stabbed or burned )

So comparing life in the UK to life in Oz is a very subjective and relative thing.

I know where I intend to end my days. And I am not going with rose tinted glasses, I have lived in Oz before. We were hungry and homeless for a while until we were given jobs AND a place to live by a friendly local. . . . . That doesn't happen here too often!

Nic

rab

Great post and absolutely bang on. I am a senior project manager in the Government here and don't earn anywhere near what is stated on those lists of wages and am still earning less than I did in UK 5 years ago.

I have been a member of British Expats for a few years now and am perennially sick of the perpetual rose-tinted views on here all the time.

When will the web administrators set up a genuine section for real expats who are proud to be British, happy to live in Australia and don't want to listen to rose-tinted migration stories all day long?

carolinejones3

Very misleading..in fact its scandalous to say the the majority of nurses in the uk earn 52K, what a load of absolute crap!!! Most nurses and midwifes would be in the 20 to 30K range. IMO.
Caroline

Pollyana

Do you have any idea how difficult that would be to moderate? How on earth would we separate threads? We do have real jobs as well you know

Seriously guys, please why don't some of you follow Sue's suggestion and do some articles yourselfs. There are some one that part of the forum now from us genuine posters, they aren't all by companies, so please, some of you redeess the balance and poist YOUR stories

The O'Neills

Are you saying that the majority of nurses in the UK earn 52k? Or that the article is misleading people into believing that they earn 52k? My sister is an RGN and she earns 22k. One of my friends who is a senior nurse with 25 years experience is only on 32k so i am a bit confused?!

Nic

Pollyana

http://britishexpats.com/articles/au.../better-in-oz/

It states
Nurse - Midwife Aus £62,360 UK £52,738 Difference £9,622

That would mean a midwife would be on $155,000 (Ish!)
Lets get some balance into this guys - come up with some articles with the real story

I'm definitely in the wrong job - or so I would think if I actually believed what I've just read.

The O'Neills

Okay so. . . .

I am one of those really annoying peeps, who jump on a thread, don't really know what the jist is, and puts in their two penneth anyway.

Now that I know what they're on about, I would love to know who did the research for that article, what a load of tosh!!

Nic

Grayling

They must be talking about dollars obviously...it is all a bit sloppy.

Grayling

No more misleading than saying they earn £62000 in Australia.

bcworld

Also being discussed here:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=564567

I just have to quote my favourite bit again:

"Fortunately for Aussies, cheap groceries and petrol are an everyday delight."

This isn't an article....it's an advertising feature.... a very misleading and poorly written one at that!