gasdoctor

I have been here over a year now and I have never been so bored and skint, I am a gasfitter and plumber and the red tape here is unbelievable the wages are awful. we are running out of money. we thought about moving interstate but i am not sure if i would still face lotsa red tape in other states to work as a plumber ( any advice appreciated). I cannot believe the shite wages if and when i did get a licence and they seem to do everything in their power here to stop you becoming self employed. Yes sunsets and beach walks are nice here, but NOT every weekend!!. we have no money and came for a better lifestyle here ha ha . we were much better off in the uk with foreign holidays for the kids etc. The truth about this country should be known. They used to say bournemouth was gods waiting room, try WA. I was offered a job as a maintenace man in a hotel = $35k before stoppages, is this normal

Frustrated, lost heart. and almost given up.

Amazulu

Australia isn't for everyone.

Ransi

Friends of ours is a gas fitter...was shocked when he said he gets $19 p/h...ridiculous.

BEVS

I started a reply to this and then stopped. Is this a wind-up?
I am Bournemouth born and bred. Bmth is not boring !! We had a good lifestyle there and made a great turnover within the plumbing and gas-fitting trade. Bmth is a lively town with plenty to see and do.

We have no idea about the red tape in Oz but we have and are facing red tape here in NZ. There are several exams and practical assessments before you can reach self-employment stage. Extremely frustrating , time consuming and costly.

There is one exam and one practical assessment before you will be an NZ registered plumber though. Have you considered New Zealand ?

You will still be quite skint. You will still get ' the treatment' but the country itself is a good place to be. Believe me , it doesn't beat Bournemouth and Dorset but its sweet as...

gasdoctor

I could live here or uk, Australia is no better or worse than uk just different but I need a decent wage so I can take kids to movies etc, nothing extravegant. Australia isnt for everyone I know as has been said. but deary me, the wages and red tape is so poor. Is it just WA ( wait awhile)?

gasdoctor

Sorry, I wasnt taking pee out of bournemouth, just related to a tv prog where they sed all pensioners moved to B,mouth. I have heard of another guy who left here to go to NZ. what sort of wages do they pay. Dont think I am greedy but just to have small luxuries such as a pizza night seem expensive. difficult when my trade pay so well in the uk, impossible to get a decent mortgage here based on skilled worker wages. I used to have many a good weekend away in bournemouth with an ex after her ex husband took her kids for a weekend . the connaught hotel

Wendy

You should give another part of Australia a go.

My hubby was offered $47,500 to work as a maintenance guy fixing mechanical doors here in South Australia (he's an Electrician). Don't know how much a handyman in a hotel would earn though.

Have no idea about plumbers, Electricians have to do all the red tape stuff, which is a pain in the behind, BUT we knew about all of this BEFORE we considered coming here and budgeted for it accordingly.

Try not to give up mate, it does knock your confidence but I'm sure you haven't come all this way just to give up now. Get out there and show them what your made of


All the best x

BEVS

S'OK gasdoctor. I took no offence. I KNOW that Bournemouth is a great place to be.
Tell me about it. I left it for New Zealand !

On another note.

We and many in our trade, thought we knew what exactly was what before emigrating.
If the route to trade registration is not crystal clear , then that lack of clear cut information lays squarely with the respective immigration service and the countries trade organisation.

Its an all too familiar tale.

gasdoctor

Problem is they keep moving the goalpost as such, the new business course we have to do before getting the opportunity to take the plumbing course still is not in place after 0ver a year of planning. I have my gas ticket but the regs say I can change a gas hot water unit and connect the gas but i woul then need to call in a plumber to connect the water. hfty fines if not licenced

dandd

cant offer any contribution on plumbing, but re wages in UK i was on £40k, here ive just started on $32K - but the job is a not-for-profit social justice org' which im hoping will open all sorts of doors in the long term, whilst 'doing my bit' for a year or so.

regarding WA.. its fab, gorgeous, amazing etc. (well, our bit is anyway), but you do need some imagination and a few friends to make the most of it. i think its part of the way of life, weve been used to expecting to pay a few quid and get entertained at our convenience, in WA you have to think about how best spend the day.

I assume youve done the zoo, AQWQ, amadale reptile park, kings park, all the beatiful coastal towns less than an hours drive of perth, and done the odd weekend down the coast roads?.. not that im the expert but cant really see it being boring.

Brigall

Hi, Hope you can give me any info on gas license as I am due to move to Perth in January. I have an Electrical Mechanical company in the UK as well as been a electrician I am also a Corgi registered engineer, qualified in domestic and commercial ACS elements I also have LPG tickets does any of this give you exemptions or do you have to resit all exams, Do you need to attend night school? If so for how long.

Larissa

That's shite coz we desperately need plumbers, I waited 2 months just to get a gas fire fitted (it was flued) and paid through the nose for it as we had a newborn in the house. I had one Aussie turn up from Alinta, walked out because he couldn't do the job... in all we had 7 people in and out to look at the job and an Irish guy did it in under 2 hours. What are the government playing at???
I hope you get through ya red tape, Perth could be a nightmare without a job but it's great if you do get employment.

sunbather

Unfortunately it doesn't matter what UK qualifications you have, you still have to do a course and take exams over here

steve99

Ive had to wait about 4 weeks to finally get my plumber out to do a few bits, he's rushed of his feet easily doing 10hr days, charging about $60/hr.
He's got a UK guy working with him (which is apparantly allowed) whilst he goes through getting his license etc converted over to the Aussie one.
If I were you (and you may of already done this but keep trying) I would ring around loads of plumbers out of the yellow pages and just explain that you want to work under them whilst getting your Aus qualification and do they have more work than they can cope with at the moment, I dont know of any decent Tradesman that would say no at the moment.
Same story with our Electrician, about a months wait and about 10 calls to get him to commit, he met me at 7am one saturday morning and did 4hrs work at $65hr.
Both are originally from the UK.
Where abouts are you living in Perth.

by the sea side

I honestly think it is normal. My husbands job pays heaps and he had a job to come to otherwise I couldn't really see the point.We have a friend in WA and he complains about the same thing.He is aborginal and works as a fitter at the iron ore mine but he reckons Brisbane is a much better city.I like Brisbane but I don't live there. You could give some where else a try but it's money and upheaval.My husband would like to go to the Wollongong area he grew up there came here when he was 9 then back to UK again he really likes it there.It has alot going for it because it isn't isolated
I am not sure why so many people go to Perth from the uk.Was there any special reason you chose Perth?
There does seem to be alot of jumping through hoops here to get a job.I did wonder when I was in the Uk why there was so many Aussies working and living there.I met people that had lived in Britain for years and no way would they come back strange really as people in UK are always tryingto leave.
I feel your frustration my husband says it's easier over this side of the country.wages for plumbers in the uk are really good. My husband says if you want he could find out the deal over here for pllumbers .The only thing is it may cost has much to move to the east coast has going back to the Uk.Where did you live in the Uk? Just out of interest. Perth is very isolating for some kinds of work