Working in Australia 4

[Alekk]

Hi everybody, I'm a structural engineer with 2 years experience, most of all in bridge engineering, who would like to work in Australia. Does anybody know how much they pay ?

Thanks


Ale

 

[GregLocock]

About 40-55000 $A pa, at a guess, perhaps a little more. Taxes are ridiculously high, living costs, except house prices, are low.

A Level 3 would be on about 80k package round here, I don't know what a Level 1 would be on.


Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[Alekk]

Thanks a lot, Greg.
Just another questions: what do you mean by " taxes are ridiculously high"? 35-40%? What about health insurance?

Thanks

Ale

 

[GregLocock]

We have, for a youngster, a perfectly good national health system, so you don't need additional health insurance. I'm 45 and for various reasons the government makes it worth my while to pay for basic hospital cover, which is about 50 bucks a month.

Tax rates are OK if you earn less than 63000, after that they ramp up

Annual Taxable Income............... Tax

$0 - $6000 .................. Nil

$6001 - $21600 ........... Nil plus 15c for each $ over $6000

$21601 - $63000.......... $2340 plus 30c for each $ over $21600

$63001 - $95000.......... $14760 plus 42c for each $ over $63000

$95001 and over ......... $28200 plus 47c for each $ over $95000.

Plus about 1.5% for your health cover.

In addition we pay a 10% sales tax, and some other things of little interest. There's no state level income taxes.

Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[ziggi]

Wow, thats not bad for taxes. I'm taxed about 30% of my earnings and I'm in the 21k to 63k bracket. I think I will move to Oz in a few years after all.

I hear good things about Perth, any comments?

 

[QCE]

I'm assuming by your questions that you are from the USA. If that is true then yes the taxes are high and the wages may even sound high. The tax rate is very similiar to Canada and wages are about the same. I have a feeling Civil Engineers are not in high demand in Australia and you may have a tough time getting a visa to work there. Greg do you think it would be easy for a engineer with two years experience to get a work visa for australia without a job offer? I'm not sure your situation I'm just trying to guess.

I would guess Ziggi is from Canada. In that case the wages, taxes and dollar conversion are fairly close. If that is the case then Ziggi is part of the commonwealth and may have a shot at a visa a little easier. Ziggi you are certainly able to get a holiday working visa for 1 year. However I believe you are not allowed to work as a professional with that visa. However many do.

 

[GregLocock]

We're always short of good engineers. Typically our good unis have about a 90% take-up rate for their engineering graduates. Check

http://www.apesma.asn.au/young_professionals/index.asp

for their graduate surveys (downloadable) and other relevant info.

You get 60 points on your immigration application for a Civil engineer, which makes you as desirable as a plumber, ie the maximum number of points available. If you want to pursue it check

http://www.immi.gov.au/

Perth is a great place, although it is a bit isolated.



Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[wes616]

I almost did a year exchange at the uni in Perth when I was in college.... A "girl" kept me... WHAT WAS I THINKING!?!

Wes C.

 

[razzy]

This link to jobs in Brisbane, Australia should shed some light on salaries paid over there. You can also check out jobs in other Australian cities through this link...

http://mycareer.com.au/jobs/brisbane/engineering/civil-structural/?pg=1

 

[ColourfulFigsnDiags]

One thing you should also realise is that the Australian health care system is funded by the government. For most typical visits to the doctor, you can "bulk bill" which means you do not pay a cent. Same with most visits to Hospital (if you are happy to stay using the public system- which is very very good). Most other more serious or elective issues are either partially or fully covered by the Australian medical system "medicare". Unlike the US, you do not need to take out a small loan to get good health care. In some ways this makes up for our relatively high taxes.

Sydney is an expensive place to live, but Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane are quite cheap, even by world standards (even Sydney is cheaper than London though! is there anywhere in the world more expensive than london!!!).

 

[razzy]

Thanks for the informative posts so far.

I have some more general questions about living in Australia and the different cities and such...

- First of all, it seems as there are 5 major cities in Australia, or at least I have been focusing my research on those 5 areas. They are Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane/Gold Coast, Adelaide, and Perth.

As I am still finding things out about those places, here is what I know about each city so far....

Sydney - beautiful, one of the top places to live in the world, according to links I have found on the internet. Expensive, though. Not sure about the weather there, though it seems that there is a lack of natural disasters there.

Melbourne - 2nd largest city there, cheaper, not as glamorous. The weather is changeable.

Brisbane/Gold Coast - I already know that Queensland is looking for a bunch of civil engineers and have seen ads for civil technicians like myself in which the employer is willing to sponsor and maybe help with relocation cost for immigrants, so it seems like the market there is ripe for my trade. The weather seems nice too, though wet and humid. But never below freezing. The downside seems to be that they are more at risk for cyclones and other natural disasters. Fast growing area, not expensive.

Adelaide - Dont know as much about this place. Comments I have read seem to indicate that the place is nice and charming. mediterranean climate. I would like to learn more about Adelaide.

Perth - Isolated, hot, and dry, though with good beaches and seems to be growing with a prosperous economy. I have looked less at Perth than the other areas because of its isolation. The job market is probably good for those in the CE field.

Am I pretty much on the mark here? Any other comments or suggestions to this from those in Australia would be greatly appreciated!

 

[GregLocock]

Sorry, I don't know much about the CE side, basically the population of all those cities are growing, with the possible exception of ADelaide.

Sydney - not much manufacturing engineering, nice inner city surrounded by miles of boring and/or dreadful suburbs (the coast is nice, as are the Blue Mountains). Climate is pretty much shirtsleeves all year, a bit humid for my tastes.

Melbourne - the manufacturing powerhouse of Oz. Occasionally drops to freezing, and our summers are a lot hotter and drier than Sydney's. Pretty dull city centre surrounded by some nice suburbs and some awful ones.

Adelaide - very pretty , atmosphere feels lke a small town . Has had a series of state governments run by lunatics who seem incapable of understanding finances. because of this I don't think you'd find much manufacturing work, as they recently have had a couple of bad closures, so there is a lot of spare talent. If you are into mining then you could probably find a gig. A very nice place, with terrific weather, and a laid back attitude.

Perth, nice town, very isolated, not much manufacturing wrk, all the mining work you could ever wish for.

Brisbane you seem to have covered.

You've forgotten Darwin and our national capital, Canberra.

Darwin is generally crazy, I really like it, but there are only two sorts of weather, 90 deg F and 100% humidity, or 90 deg F and torrental rain.

Canberra is cold in winter, hot in summer, and boring all year round. Having said that my aunt thinks it is the nicest place to live in Oz, so there ya go.







Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[ColourfulFigsnDiags]

Canberra = Political town, probably the most boring place on the face of the planet. Very little opportunity for a CE there.

Melbourne is a very european city, very laid back and very livable. It has been voted most livable city in the world before. Very large job base for CE's with most of Australia's major refineries and process industries located near by (and in Geelong - about 50km away)

Sydney, tourist mecca, beautiful harbour, exciting inner city are but expensive as all hell, and once you leave the central area- the suburbs are a bit dull (unless you have a few million to live near the see or the waterways)

Perth, lovely growing city, beautiful weather most of the time, a little isolated, but some great job ops growing over there, particullarly in Mining and Oil/Gas.

Brisbane, lovely tropical weather, but still has that small country town feel to it ...

Darwin- amazing place, rebuilt from the ground up after cyclone Tracey in 1975 when the entire population was relocated while then city was rebuilt. Growing still since then, and probably some good oportunities for engineers up there, but must admit I'm not too familiar with job oportunities up there. Make sure you know how to drink beer- particullarly during the "Silly Season".

 

[kamilamca]

Hello everyone. I have worked as a software developer in the US for a small company for 6 years. And now I've been looking for a similar job with no luck. So I am thinking about moving. My top 2 choices are England or Australia.
Does anyone have any ideas if software developers are in high demand in either of these countries? Where would I get paid more versus the cost of living?
Thanks a lot.

 

[GregLocock]

No, we have a glut of ITers in Australia. You also need a certificate in food hygiene to work as a waiter here.



Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[ScottyUK]

Greg,

Any idea about demand for engineers in the power generation & heavy electrical industries?



----------------------------------

One day my ship will come in.
But with my luck, I'll be at the airport!

 

[lewtam]

Australian Outlook for next 5-10 years:

Infrastructure: Road & rail network due for a major upgrade to cope with population growth. Critical need for more water storage nationwide which will eventually have to be addressed despite chromic NIMBY syndrome. Several bulk material and container ports have planned expansions to increase capacity. Road designers will need to remember that because we drive on the LHS of the road, the camber should be towards the centre.

Mining & Energy Resources: Get city living out of your head and you can write your own check. We can't dig holes in the ground quick enough, we can't get it to the port quick enough and the ports can't handle the demand. Major O&G developments ongoing in northwest coast, plus many Asian field developments managed from Australian regional offices. There's increased danger pay because of the risk of diptheria from exposure to emus.

Power: The second highest per capita energy use nation in the world needs power. New developments in smaller peak load stations seem to be the flavour right now, so design and/or management of gas fired, and/or cogeneration, less than 200MW experience would pay off. That said, there are plenty of base load stations on the books. Energy de-regulation a relatively recent beast here, as is home lighting. If you're in the market for a new house, be sure and check that it isn't still on the kerosene grid.

Manufacturing: With some exceptions, unless the products manufactured are directly involved with the above areas, the manufacturing sector is having a tough time. Very similar reasons to those discussed regarding US manufacturing - ie labour costs, efficiency issues, union mandated underpants and deodorant bans etc. Added to that is the inherent problems of manufacturing in the southern hemisphere - the lathe has to spin the other way etc.

A word of warning: some Australians have trouble remaining serious for more than 2 sentences, and are given to stretching the truth.




LewTam Inc.
Petrophysicist, Head Stockman, Gun Welder, Gun Shearer, Ski Instructor, Drama Coach.

 

[lewtam]

Mechanical design consultants have to keep a high level of professionalism in Australia:

http://www.lc.com.au/projects/ShitStirrers.htm

 

[ColourfulFigsnDiags]

lewtam: LOL fantastic, a very typically Australian website When you think that sometimes the world takes itself too seriously- come to Australia

Read the Eng-Tips Site Policies at FAQ731-376

 

[GregLocock]

Scotty (and others) have a look around this website

http://jobsearch.gov.au/joboutlook/default.aspx?PageId=AscoDesc&AscoCode=2125&TextOnly=0

There's an 'official' shortage of civil engineers, but as you can see there aren't many unemployed sparkies either.

Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.