How to Find a Job in New Zealand

Wednesday, 19 Feb 2020

How to Find a Job in New Zealand by Send My Bag

New Zealand is one of the best places in the world to live and work. The country snapped up 5th  position in a 2019 HSBC expat explorer survey – an annual survey which ranks the best countries in the world for expats. Factors contributing to New Zealand as a popular choice for people to move to include the high quality of life, career progression and good work-life balance there. Have you been won over by the many reasons New Zealand is one of the best countries to move to? Send My Bag is here to offer guidance on finding a job in New Zealand.

Types of Work Visas

Types of work visas in New Zealand can vary depending on length of stay and other more specific requirements. The working holiday visa is available to 18-30-year olds who want to work and travel in New Zealand. The length of stay on this visa is 12 months or 23 months for people from the UK or Canada. Another temporary work visa in New Zealand is the Essential Skills work visa, the difference between this and the working holiday visa is that you need to have a job in one of the skilled occupations on New Zealand’s skill shortage lists. It was recently announced that a new temporary work visa is set to replace some of the other temporary work visas that are currently available in New Zealand. This is due to happen between now and 2021 and the application process for this new visa will require an employer check, job check and worker check.

For a longer stay in New Zealand, there is the long-term skill shortage list work visa. With this visa you are eligible to stay in the country for up to 30 months, provided that you are offered a job in an occupation on New Zealand’s long-term skill shortage list.  This visa also offers a pathway to permanent New Zealand residence, which you can apply for after working in your skilled occupation for 2 years. To find the visa that is most suited to you, it is helpful to use the visa options tool on The New Zealand Department of Immigration website.

Job Sectors with the Most Opportunities

The leading industries in New Zealand are known to be agriculture, construction, tourism, and finance. Occupations in these industries are in high demand, so they appear across many of New Zealand’s skill shortage lists. Other in-demand occupations on New Zealand’s skill shortage list include those in engineering, business, health & social work, ICT and trade-work. The skill shortage lists can differ depending on what visa you are applying for and which region in New Zealand you plan to work in. All of the lists are available on the immigration section of New Zealand’s government website.

New Zealand’s Work Culture

The New Zealand Herald reported that work-life balance is one of the most important factors for people in New Zealand when it comes to their job. New Zealand is one of the best countries in the world for having a great work-life balance. 2019 stats showed that three-quarters of working New Zealanders are satisfied with their work-life balance because of flexible working hours. In HSBC’s 2019 expat explorer survey, work-life balance was one of the key factors leading to New Zealand’s top position as one of the world’s best countries to live and work!

Where to Find a Job?

One of your main reasons for moving to New Zealand is to start fresh in a new job, but it is important to not put pressure on yourself to land the perfect job upon making the move to New Zealand. You could very well fall in love with the first job that you find, or it could be a matter of working in a job that you don’t necessarily enjoy at first. If this is the case, consider it to be a chance to get your foot in the door and to start earning money until you find something more suitable. Keep an open mind to new work experiences and opportunities!

Seek New Zealand is one of the most popular websites for finding a job for professionals. Some other general job vacancy websites include Hays Recruiting, Haystack, Apply Direct, and Jobify. There are many recruitment agencies that you could use in New Zealand, but some popular ones include Adecco, Agoge Recruitment, Beyond Recruitment, Robert Walters, and Cobalt Recruitment. There are also industry-specific recruitment websites, for example 6am Recruitment for construction and engineering, or AgCareers.com for agricultural jobs. Having a Linked In profile is a good idea and actively participating and engaging on the platform with people in New Zealand from the career sector that you’re interested in. It has been identified that employee referrals on LinkedIn make it four times more likely for a recruiter to contact you, so connecting with employees from any company that you would like to work for and asking for referrals is a useful step in your job search.

Part-time and Temporary Work

You may be moving to New Zealand on the working holiday visa so that you can travel and are only looking for part-time work for some extra money to fund your travels. There are many jobs available in the tourism and hospitality sector, particularly in New Zealand’s top tourist destinations Bartending, waitressing, hotel staff and similar jobs in this sector are usually great for part-time work. Joining Facebook groups like Backpacker Jobs New Zealand is a great way to find casual and part-time job listings.

You will find whatever job is right for you in New Zealand! It’s important to not focus so much on finding the perfect job that you miss out on the excitement of exploring your new home. You can send everything you need to New Zealand through our door-to-door luggage shipping service – leaving you with one less thing to worry about. 

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