Bryars2011

Can somebody explain to me exactly why the work/life balance in NZ is so much better than in the UK.
Pardon my ignorance but I find it hard to understand why and what makes it so special in NZ. We are in the early stages of emigration and this keeps popping up and i suppose only those who have made the move will truly understand and explain.
Thanks again !!!!!

pricklykina

It's hard for me to say as I was young and single in the UK and here I am older, marrieder and a mum. So I don't know what it was like to live my current life there.

I feel busy but not overwrought for sure.
My work understands that I'm a mum and I take my daughter in to work sometimes and that is fully supported (it's not unusual to see kids in my workplace)

I work .9 but that is 36 hours here which feels like full time to me.
I's like more than my 4 weeks hols of course but I don't feel hard done by.

dannigirl

I think it depends so much on your own situation i.e where you live in the UK and what your job is.

If you work 50-60 hours in London with a 1 hour commute to work each way then it wouldn't be difficult to gain an extra few hours a week with a smaller commute.

Other than probably Auckland, commuting in NZ is pretty tame compared to UK standards.

A lot will depend on your job, some people say they actually have to work harder and longer hours in NZ just to make ends meet. Growing up I certainly recall my dad having to work Saturdays as a general rule, he also did lots of perk work on the side of his full time job. What I dislike about London is that people equate long hours to working hard. I have to do my job within my hours because I have childcare commitments and I refuse to work at home unless it is absolutely essential...so I have to be efficient and get my work done fast to stay relatively stress free!

Work for me in the UK is enjoyable but logistics i.e travel, dirt and pollution, lots of people getting in my way really have a huge impact on me day to day (although not every day). I imagine there are other cities in the UK where these experiences would not apply. Here I also crave my holidays, I almost feel I need them to survive my working life. At home (NZ) holidays were of course nice and appreciated but I didn't feel the same urgency or sense of exhaustion.

It's also about your life outside of work, I don't feel that I can achieve the lifestyle that I want in the UK but that is just me....I grew up with the negatives of NZ so can cope with them....some people can't and the benefits do not outweigh the negatives.

Bryars2011

We live on the edge of the yorkshire dales.
I currently work a 4 day week, with friday as overtime. My wife though ( a nurse ) works 50 hours on a rolling week including weekends. This means we only get the odd weekends together as a family. I really dont know if the balance will be any better in NZ. We are hoping it will be...but......

dannigirl

Pretty sure there are some British nurses on this site in NZ (that will be sleeping or on night shift right now ) so they may be able to give some info about what the work/life balance is like out there.

I do wonder if people do have unrealistic expectations from emigrating, I mean most people still have to work, pay bills, do the school run etc. 12,000 miles is a long way to move to replicate your old lifestyle with no family/friends or support network!

Hope I am not being too nosey, but what is making you look at NZ? What do you have to gain from moving there?

darrell1966

I am going to go to New Zealand and, after the research I have done, I am fully expecting to work more in NZ than in England

Genesis

I guess it depends how much cash you come with. I am quite old and as such have some fiscal independence and thus only Kate has to work these days. So we now have Kate doing a 40 hr week whereas in the UK due to high costs we worked 60 hours between us. But then I hear some kiwi employers work their staff into the ground. But whose fault is that?? One assumes you work contracted hours OR you earn that much that the shirt off your back is there for the taking. You pays your money you takes your choice. I think most kiwis will be working much harder of their own volition as NZ is up to its eyes in HUGE debt. Both of the govt type AND mainly of the personal kind. NZ is in for some very, very hard times. I have been saying it a long time and the shit is really going to start hitting its fan right about now. Choppy waters ahead. By the way some one asked why NZ? For us it was a chance to get away from the rat race of the UK, have a better quality of life and I don't mind admitting the shallowness of wanting to be more cashed up with less outgoings. We have suceeded all those things and whilst all our money STILL goes we have a huge quality of life whereas in the Uk it was pretty much drugery and our money goes on things we WANT to spend it on rather than what we HAD to spend it on.

janeyk

again it does depend who you work for, popping out for a coffee etc is norm where I have worked in a DHB and for a university however I am not on a ward etc, It is school hols here my work do not batter an eyelid at shorter days due to child care arrangements, some of us come in early some in later to avoid traffic undertaken training etc

MattandJax

both Matt and I work similar hours here, and Im still a part time nurse. for us we have more quality leisure time. we are off together every weekend/BH etc.. and because of the better climate, less people, scenic and beautiful places all around us, we have a better life here in NZ. we have just been for a long weekend to Bay of islands,(for no particular reason!) enjoyed warm sun, beaches, bush walks, history, ferry rides and not many people around.
we wouldnt have done anything like that close to home in March!

Genesis

Sounds like why I like living in NZ. Alas my life is not as spontaneous and exciting as yours..enter 3 kids under 10!!!!

Woodpigeon

When my OH was working shifts on the ward we saw less of him in NZ than we did in UK (and that's saying something!) mainly cos of the shift patterns I think. In UK if he did an early shift he finished at 2.30pm so was home in time to collect the kids from school, and night shifts were 8pm - 8am - IIRR. In NZ his early shift didn't finish until around 4pm, and the night shift started at 11pm (felt very weird me going to bed whilst he was hanging around waiting to go to work)!

For me, when I was working full-time here I was on a 40 hour week contract (office work), and had to fight to be allowed start and finish times that fitted in with my family. That said, same employer was very easy going around me having days off or working from home when the kids were ill.

Where I am now, working 18.75 hours a week, my current boss is quite happy for me to fit those hours around whatever else is going on in my life so long as I'm there to meet deadlines So if I want a long weekend I can just work a couple of full days instead of halves, and then take Friday & Monday off (typically though OH now works Mon-Fri full days ).

Current employer also prefers letting staff take time off in lieu rather than paying for overtime (suits me ).

However, in the general run of things I don't think we are any better off in NZ work/life balance wise, just that the needs and requirements of the family have changed (kids are now all mid-late teens).

Woodlea

It's the same as the UK, it depends on your job. But it's sunnier and drier

Am Loolah

As everyone has said, this conundrum is so subjective.

I am self-employed so I don't have an office or hours I am tied to. My freephone number comes directly through to my mobile, so I can be at the beach or lunch and still pick up work enquiries.

When I am on the road, I don't get stuck in traffic.

When I decide to have a day off I don't do anything very exciting. Kind of like Genesis with children and school you are still restricted. I don't take off very often and see places as usually the kids would rather be home with their mates.

But I prefer the lifestyle here for me, as in my order of priorities I find the weather far better than where I was in the UK, get decent summers, live one street back from the beach, have a lot of friends and a busy social life and like the BBQ/wine/beach/friends life that I am fortunate enough to have. Others may find that terribly boring - for instance my 18 year old - but hey, it works for me! And as the saying goes in my house; "If Momma ain't happy, ain't no bugger happy ..."

lapsed kiwi

Here's my example. I work close to the CBD of NZ's biggest city. I live outside the city, in a seaside town. In summer, I finish work at 4pm, am at home by 4:45pm, and can be changed and on the beach with my kids by 5pm. And, it's a great, safe swimming beach for my family where the water temperature is warm enough to swim in for at least 3 months of the year

I don't think this would be feasible in the UK

darrell1966

As someone who would love to come and live in NZ, I can promise you that 3 months potential splashing in the sea would would be very very low on my list of pluses