Finding Gainful and Meaningful Employment

Securing employment was to prove frustrating to say the least.  It had taken us 5 days to find the apartment and move in.  Paul wanted to be working by the following Monday.  However things didn’t happen like that in Australia and it took a while for us to settle in for the wait.

We had stuff to do first and top of the list was Internet access from the laptop so we could search for jobs online and send out CVs.  We did this by buying a dongle and because we don’t watch films or play games (Paul’s been banned from downloading porn) it’s not too expensive.  Tying ourselves into a contract was a huge expense (relatively speaking) at this stage although it wouldn’t seem so once we were working.  On top of that, until we start working it will all still feel a bit temporary.

We both prepared CVs and covering letters.  We then settled down to spend time applying for various jobs through various agencies.  I applied for lots of government jobs but, as with all government matters, the process takes a while.  There is also a lot of competition for government jobs because the pay and benefits are usually quite good.  I also applied to agencies for legal secretarial positions.

After the first couple of days, there were no jobs left for us to apply for and we were twiddling our thumbs.  The same jobs were appearing on the same websites and we were beginning to think that this was going to be more difficult than we first envisaged.

Paul booked and completed his White Card (health and safety course).  While he was there he managed to glean from his fellow course attendees that traffic management was the way to go and so instructed me to book a traffic management course which I did. 

I should explain what traffic management is.  They don’t seem to use temporary traffic lights in Australia at roadworks.  Instead, they employ someone to stand there all day and turn a big stop/go lollipop around to control the traffic.  Even where there is a contraflow, you will see someone with a lollipop directing you to filter from one lane to two.  And they do that all day.  The money is apparently quite good but I really can’t imagine Paul lasting 5 minutes doing this.  He says he’ll do anything for the money but just standing there, doing nothing all day apart from turn a sign around (or not) will simply drive him to distraction and who knows where that will lead?  Warehouse or factory work would provide more diversity but I can’t even begin to explain what skills and experience is required for that sort of work these days.

On this point I should add that it is said that there is less unskilled work than there was years ago.  They are wrong.  The difference is that these days they require you to have completed all sorts of courses before you can pick up a cardboard box.  The job itself remains unskilled although you can still be a good worker.  I would happily do a bit of bar work but I cannot be employed anywhere that serves alcohol without a RWS certificate.  The fact that I hold a personal licence to serve alcohol in the UK is irrelevant.

I have heard nothing (beyond automated acknowledgement emails) in response to my various job applications.  I did visit an agency in the city to apply for secretarial work.  The agent was actually really nice, a fellow Brit, and although she said things were a bit tough at the moment they were nowhere near as bad as they were back in the UK.  She was confident that with my skills I would find work soon enough.

I completed a typing, spelling and skills test and amazingly, despite the fact that I haven’t been working for over a year, did rather well.

When I discussed my CV with my agent she told me in no uncertain terms that I needed to dumb it down big time.  Otherwise, I would have the same problem as I have had in the past in the UK in that I would appear overqualified and therefore not be considered for any secretarial work.

As a legal executive in the UK I am considered a lawyer and can practise law, provide advice, appear in Court, and do practically everything a solicitor can do.

Here in Australia, they do have something called a legal executive, but they are considered more a legal secretary/legal assistant.

One look at my proper CV and no-one was going to consider me for a legal secretarial position.  I would simply be dismissed out of hand.  That was one reason I was going for government jobs as they seem to have some interesting posts, involving research and/or policy.  I thought I would really enjoy something different in a completely different environment.  I am bored with personal injury litigation and really don’t want a secretarial position in that field but I may have no choice.  Whatever I end up getting, I’ll give it my best shot.

My agent tinkered about with my CV and she said she would put me forward for a job in a city firm dealing with professional indemnity insurance claims.  I was happy with this because it was not my field, was in fact a fairly complicated field of law, and therefore it would be a bit of a challenge. 

Rather unfortunate and harsh

Paul on the other hand, really needs a job as quickly as possible otherwise he is going to go completely loopy.  Boredom is setting in and with that comes mischievousness.  He’s already been sending emails to the Camberwell Art Gallery asking them why they having their finest arts killed in such a dramatic fashion.  That’s a point, maybe I should apply to them for the job of proof reader because clearly they don’t have one.

Not knowing when the money is going to start coming in limits your activities somewhat (and limits your enthusiasm too as you become pretty much obsessed with that one thing).

We did however venture out late one afternoon to see if we could spot any of the little penguin colony which resides on the breakwater at the end of the pier where the old Victorian kiosk is situated.  It was an amazing evening, a beautiful sunset but ridiculously cold.  Unfortunately you cannot actually gain access along the breakwater at the moment because they are in the middle of an upgrade in order to make way for the new marina.  So as the sun went down we spent about an hour and a half wandering around the pier and as darkness fell we stared hard at the breakwater from the pier but sadly didn’t spot any little penguins. 

Little penguins are the smallest species of penguin (hence the name) and have made their home along the breakwater since about 1970.  The upgrading of the breakwater does not seem to be bothering them that much (according to information on the world wide web) but we didn’t see them and were too cold to hang around much longer in the dark when it was unlikely we would be able to see them then anyway.

The presence of the penguins does, however, add to my reasons for liking Melbourne and in particular, St Kilda.  I liked the city as soon as we arrived and the longer we stay here, the more we see, the more I want to spend some time here.  There are lots of bars and pubs, many offering free live music.  In particular the famous "Espy" is just around the corner and is one of Melbourne's iconic live music venues.  It will just be nice to be working and to be able to enjoy all the city has to offer without fretting about money.

So two weeks after starting to look for work we are still twiddling our thumbs.  I keep trying to remind Paul that it is not actually that long, but he is used to walking onto building sites or calling contacts one day and starting work the next but it simply doesn't work that way in Australia.  We even spent one morning driving to a few building sites but unfortunately the weather was bad and he was only able to speak to one lone and soggy chippy who was a bit reluctant to be too helpful.  Other than that, he could find no-one else working on site that day and on subsequent excursions, this seems to be the norm.  Building sites in the UK are hives of activity whereas here, in Australia, it seems they turn up for a day here and there when they feel like it.

Me, on the other hand, I had already had a reality check a year ago when I was “made redundant”.  At that time I tried to find something else to tide me over until we left on our trip.  Because we were heading off in 5 months I couldn’t go for anything permanent and there was nothing short term, and on top of that no-one would consider me for secretarial or admin work because I was overqualified. The situation was particularly bad in the UK at the time, with over 100 people applying for any one job.  We remain hopeful that the situation is not nearly as bad here.

In the meantime we are settling down to some more thumb twiddling.

<<Previous

>>Next