Thursday, November 15, 2018

Average Salary per Industry in Australia

According to ‘Emigrate To Australia’ an average full-time earnings is $64,641 per year as of 2010. This doesn’t include overtimes, fringe benefits and allowances. The average male salary is $69,233 per year (still without overtime, fringe benefits and allowances). The average female salary is $56,950 per year, excluding overtime, fringe benefits and allowances. The highest paid workers are said to be in Canberra with earnings (exclusive of overtime, fringe benefits and allowances) of $75,514 per year, Western Australia came second with earnings of $70,101. Below is the table from ‘Emigrate to Australia’ which details the average earnings per industry. The figures are exclusive of fringe benefits, overtimes and allowances.

Mining ...................................................$103,111 
Manufacturing .......................................$58,292 
Electricity, Gas and Water Supply .........$71,557 
Construction ...........................................$65,816 
Wholesale Trade .....................................$62,452 
Retail Trade ............................................$48,703 
Accommodation, Cafes and Restaurants .................................................$46,306 
Transport and Storage ............................$60,018 
Communication Services ........................$77,033 
Finance and Insurance ..........................$76,487 
Property and Business Services .............$63,175 
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services .........................................$77,761 
Administrative and Support Services .....$62,884 
Government Administration and Defence ...................................................$68,177 
Education .................................................$68,921 
Health and Community Services .............$62,036 
Cultural and Recreational Services ........$56,971 
Other Services ..........................................$50,742 

Using the above table you can then make an informed decision as to which industry you should work for. Mining ranks the highest but that has to be somewhere in the Regional Australia. Professional, Scientific and Technical Services came second, they are the architects, doctors, nurses, managers, specialist on a specific field, consultants, etch. It seems most migrants work in Retail when they first get in here (Australia), however their average earnings is $48,703. But Retail jobs give them more flexibility, especially if they are studying and working at the same time.

Another industry that offers flexibility but with low average earnings is Accommodation, Cafes and Restaurants. The good thing about this industry is, it’s a well-sought after work (after work job means nigh job) and there’s always jobs everywhere. Below are the job hunters websites in Australia:

Career One www.careerone.com.au
Seek www.seek.com.au/
Government Job search http://jobsearch.gov.au/default.aspx
Jobs for all sectors http://jobs.com.au/
Newly establish job search engine and gaining populary https://au.indeed.com/ and https://au.jora.com/?https://au.jora.com/
All over Australia job, including listings in the local paper http://www.jobsearch.com.au/ Australian
Recruitment http://australia.recruit.net/

I truly wish you the best and hope you'll find a place in Australia.

Let me know if you have any question, I'll do what I can to answer you.

Goodluck!

Monday, April 4, 2011

Cost of Living in Australia

It’s difficult to calculate an average cost of living in Australia as it depends on an individual circumstances. And although it’s in the same country, some states tend to be a bit high which distorts the overall calculation.

I’ve only been to Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney. My cost of living comparison would be around these states. If you’re moving to a state apart from the above three, you can still use this as a guide.

Houses/Units
The price of accommodation is dependent on the location, as it’s always been the case. The closer you are to the city, the more expensive it gets. Suburban accommodation is fairly affordable but it gets expensive when it’s close to the train station, bus station, shopping centres and parks. The average city house is between 400K and 1M, while the average unit is between 300K and 800K. For a suburban house, the average is 300K – 900K while the average unit is between 200K and 600K. If you’re renting, an average city house rent is 300-700 per week while an average city unit is between 150 and 500 per week. A suburban house rent is between 200 and 500 per week while an average suburban unit is 140 – 400 per week.

Transportation
The transportation in Melbourne is much cheaper than Sydney. A day ticket in Melbourne which is around $5.00 and entitles you to get on/off in any stations within your trip path. While in Sydney, a day ticket (also called ‘return ticket’) is around $8.00 and entitles you to 2 travels (i.e. to your destination and from your destinations) Buses are included in the Metcard ticket in Melbourne, you can also do the same in Sydney but if you’re travelling just a bus, the one ride fare is about $4.20, so I suggest getting a weekly ticket that includes both busses and trains in Sydney.

Food
This is dependent on what sort of things you buy and use. Weekly we spend about 150 at Woolworths for groceries, 100 for meat and 50 for veggies and fruits. That’s a total of 300 per week. Aldi is known for their inexpensive products, some say we can end up with 2 bags full of stuff at aldi compare to 1 bag at Woolworth or Coles. I did shop at Aldi and they are right. But not all the products we’re using are available at Aldi, we still need to shop at Woolworth or Coles for these items. There are weeks when we don’t do groceries, we just go to the local fruit shop and get our bread, milk and fruits from there, that’s between 30.00 -50.00.

The price of a to-go (take away) lunch or dinner is between 5.00 and 10.00. An entrée in a fine restaurant is between 10.00 and 25.00, the main course is between 35.00 and 60.00, and dessert is between 20.00 and 30.00. A bottle of wine is between 10.00 and 50.00, while a glass of beer is between 4.00 and 6.00.

Utilities
We’re paying an average of 400.00 per quarter on our electricity. Now it gets a little higher during winter as we frequently use the heater, likewise in summer when we make use of the air conditioning.

Our average water usage is about 250.00 per quarter, considering we hardly water our lawn and plants, and we have our cars washed at the enviro-wash center. A car registration is between 400.00 and 600.00 per year, a pink slip is about 40.00 – 60.00 (pink slip is a car check prior to registration), and a car insurance is about 1,300.00 - 2,000.00 per annum. Petrol price is about 1.35 per litre (it’s a bit expensive these days because of what’s happening in the Middle East and the Libyan war). You can get a second hand car for about 5,000.00 and a brand new car is between 16,000.00 and 60,000.00

Clothing
Local and china clothes are normally inexpensive but the quality is not that great. You can get a top between 5.00 and 20.00, pants are around 30.00 – 70.00, and jacket is about 90.00 – 150.00 Imported goods are normally expensive; they are from 90.00 to 250.00 To get the monthly expenses we’ll just get the monthly expenses of each and add them together.

House            (200 x 52) / 12 = 867.00
Unit (150 x 52) / 12 = 650.00
Food 350.00
Power 133.00
Water 83.00

Total Expense for House Renting = 1,693.00
Total Expense for Unit Renting = 1,476.00


So there you go, if you’re renting a house your monthly expense is about 1693.00 compared to unit which is 1476.00, that’s 217.00 difference per month. If you’re walking distance to work that’s a good savings of 260.00 per month. Also, some units include water in their monthly rate, that’s another 83.00 savings per month.I assume that you won’t do as much grocery as an average family that’s why I put in 350.00 per month. You can ration your groceries accordingly and that could save you heaps more.




Thursday, March 31, 2011

Migration - Australia




I
know a lot of us are looking for ways to better our ways of living. Some of us are looking for better opportunities overseas; others take their chances and stay. But for those looking for opportunities in Australia, below are the information you will need. Just to let you know, the immigration policy in Australia keeps changing every financial year (i.e. July of every year) and therefore some of my information will change or may have already changed.

Please, use the information here as a guide only. If my information is somewhat misleading, please confirm with your Migration Agent or visit www.immi.gov.au

By the way, this is just one of the many ways you can use to migrate to Australia.

Migration through Skills
Few years ago it was easy to migrate to Australia, probably because the numbers of kangaroos are more than the number of people. But after year 2000, migration policy became stringent and migrating becomes a challenge. Today you need to pass a lot of criteria to able to be considered.

If you already have an employer in Australia then migrating will be easy for you, provided your employer is willing to sponsor you. How do you go about it? Well, you don’t! Your employer will lodge the application, together with your documentations, and you’ll just have to wait for your visa. Wait for an email, mail or call from the immigration department asking for your passport as they need to stamp it with your visa. Once it’s stamped, you can now start packing!

If you don’t have an employer and would want to work, your best option is to apply for Skilled Independent Visa (subclass 175). This visa requires you to have a positive skills assessment and passed the points test. At the moment the passing mark is 120 however they’ve got a pool mark of 100, meaning they’ll start reviewing your application after they’ve finished those that passed the points test, provided they didn’t meet the year’s quota.

Below are the ways to get points for the point test requirements:

Factors, Description and Points
Age
18-24     25 points
25-32 30 points
33-39 25 points
40-44 15 points

English language
You will need to pass the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) with marks according to the below table, which can be taken either in Australia or overseas. This test is basically broken into four components: speaking, reading, listening and writing. Below are some of the testing centres where you can take the exam.

Testing Centres in Sydney

Testing Centres in Manila
Proficient English - IELTS 7     10 points
Superior English - IELTS 8 20 points


Australian work experience in nominated occupation or a closely related occupation
To get points for this you will need to have at least a year of local (i.e. Australian) work experience in your nominated occupation in the past 2 years.
One year Australian (of past two years)     5 points
Three years Australian (of past five years) 10 points
Five years Australian (of past seven years) 15 points

Overseas work experience in nominated occupation or a closely related occupation
To get points for this you will need to have at least three years’ work experiences outside Australia (could be any part of the world but Australia) in your nominated occupation in the past 5 years.
Three years overseas (of past five years)     5 points
Five years overseas (of past seven years) 10 points
Eight years overseas (of past 10 years) 15 points


Qualifications
To get points for this you will need to have your qualification assessed by assessing body in Australia and get a positive assessment from them. You also need to have your nominated skills is in the ‘Skill Occupation List’ at the time of lodging. Now, the list gets changed every year so always check if your nominated skill is still in the list before applying.

Assessing Body:
Australian Computer Society – all IT related skills and studies.

Vocational Educational Training and Assessment Services
(VETASSESS) – for general professional skills and occupations.
Offshore recognised apprenticeship; AQFIII/IV completed in Australia; Diploma completed in Australia     10 points
Bachelor degree (including a Bachelor degree with Honours or Masters) 15 points
PhD 20 points


Recognition of Australian Study
To get points for this you will need to have completed at least a two-year full time study in Australia, that's a guaranteed 5 points

Designated language
You will need to have an accreditation by National Accreditation Authority for Translator and Interpreters (NAATI), this is 5 points

Partner skills
To get points for this, your partner needs to be included in the visa application as one of the primary applicants, not an Australian resident/citizen, is less than 50 years old at the time of the application, whose skill is in SOL and has a positive assessment (yup, needs to be assessed too!), have competent English (yes, needs to take an IELTS!), and must be working in the skilled occupation for at least 12 months in the last 24 months before the application was lodged. This is a guaranteed 5 points.

Professional Year
This is a program by the Department of immigration where participants will be familiarised to the Australian values in the workplace and employment, or this could be an internship in an Australian workplace. To enrol or check if your internship falls under the Professional Year category, you may visit the website www.immi.gov.au as the courses are limited and keeps changing every year. This rewards 5 points

Sponsorship by state or territory government
You’ll get 5 points for this if an Australian state or territory is sponsoring you.

Sponsorship by family or state or territory government to regional Australia
You’ll get 10 points for this when you are sponsored by a relative/employer that’s in a regional area (as defined by the department of immigration).

Study in a regional area
You’ll get 5 points for this when you have completed your Study (could be your Professional Year) in a regional area (as defined by the department of immigration.

So says for instance you’re 28- year old Information Technology graduate, have been working as a Developer for the past 5 years, and will be sponsored by your brother in Darwin, this will be your points:

Age  = 30points
Qualification (provided your skill is in SOL and you have a positive assessment = 60points
IELTS (your band score is 7) = 10points
Overseas work experience = 10 points
Sponsored by a family in Regional Area = 10points
Total Points 120


Now that’s an easy 120 points! You’ve passed the points test.

But let’s say you don’t have a family in the regional area that’s willing to sponsor you, you can nail your IELTS and get a band 8 score, that’s 20 points! Still gives you a passing 120 points.

Or you can take a two-year diploma study in Australia (that’s a guaranteed 15points for Qualification and 5 points for Recognition of Australia Study), now you’re way over the passing mark (140points in total).

As you can see, although the screening is stringent and the qualification is a bit high, if you’ve got legitimate work experience, good command of the English language, and has a positive assessment, you too can migrate to Australia.

So first things first, check if your skill is in SOL, if it’s in there apply for skills assessment – when you’ve got a positive assessment (they would normally tell you how much points you’ve earned) take an IELTS and nail it! Then take it from there. And I hope someday I get to see you and you can tell me how this info has helped and changed you. Good luck!

Friday, March 11, 2011

... should i say goodbye?

How do you say goodbye to someone you’ve known your whole life? To someone who helped mould you to who you are now? To someone who taught you what’s unconditional love really is?

But then again, we don’t really need to say goodbye to our loved one who passed away because they’re not really going anywhere. Well, their bodies will be buried or get cremated, but their story will continue to live in our hearts.

When it seems we’ve forgotten our departed loved ones, remember the time you first saw their wonderful and encouraging smile - that alone is enough to bring you back to the very beginning of your story together.

We don’t say goodbye… we never do. We’re just letting them rest.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Grieving....


Grieve. Such a small word to describe the unknown feelings we’re battling for the loss of someone. So small that it doesn’t even explain neither things that we go through nor effects of it to our body and the people around us. What grieving really is? How do you know you are experiencing it? How would you know that you’re over it and ready to open another chapter in your life?

We heard terrible news last night - my father-in-law died. When my wife heard about it, she just couldn’t speak, she’s weeping. Then the sound grows louder until it became a full on cry. She couldn’t stop herself from crying. Being a son-in-law I thought I wouldn’t be very much involved, but the sorrow of my wife is just so intense that it gets me… and before I knew it I was crying with her.

I tried to reason and see the brighter side of things. But you see, news like this, doesn’t matter if it was broken to you in a good wrapping, still hard to see the brighter side of things - even reasoning is difficult. And so I just let my wife cried… let her emotions out.

Honestly, I’m feeling helpless, awkward and unsure. I’m scared I might say the wrong things and make it worse for my wife. Besides I don’t know how I can extend my help to make things a little better… if not lighter.

I heard there are stages of grieving, first is absorbing – this is when the bad news was broken and the person is trying to understand what really is happening. Some people take minutes others take days, weeks, months and sometimes years before they can have a feel of what’s happening. In the case of my wife, I don’t know if she has absorbed it yet…. only she can tell.

Mourning – this is the stage where you express your loss. This is the most difficult stage of grieving because some people never come out of it the same – some people die from it. This is the stage when we should give all our support and understanding. Mourning’s duration is indefinite… for some this takes forever.

To get out of mourning one needs to accept the loss. This is crucial as the person needs to do it for herself, although we can still help her by being always there for her, ready to comfort her. Sometimes retelling the story over and over again help her come to acceptance, so if she wants to talk, let her talk and listen, with each retelling more often the pain lessens.

And finally, the cross road. This is the part when the person needs to decide what to do with her life. She can choose to move on, which is the correct and prudent way to do, go back to grieving or stay where she is.

I trust that all these things will come easy to my wife…. I pray so.

Monday, February 21, 2011

2nd Chances

I was watching repeats of ‘Batman’ last Saturday. Can’t remember the episode title but the one I’m watching has a part where batman failed to save Robin from the joker. Joker killed Robin but some guy bathed Robin in Lazarus spring. The spring is known for its fountain of youth, if you’re dead the spring will bring you back to life. To cut the story short, Robin was brought back to life but he’s way different from what he used to be.

Robin became one of those notorious criminals that batman is battling everyday. Worse, Robin is now killing people.

Well, at the end of the episode Robin failed to avenge his death from the joker (as joker got away), batman saved him from the joker (this time he’s successful) but Robin got away too… and batman couldn’t find him… and he’s not even sure if he’s going back to his old self.

As you can see, robin was given a 2nd chance to relive his life. But what is 2nd chance really is? Is it to better our life? Is it to correct the things we’ve done wrong? Is it to make amends to people that we’ve wronged? Or is it to avenge our misfortune?

In robin’s case, he used his 2nd chance to take revenge. But by doing so, he has hurt more people and had more mistakes. Was he right to use his 2nd chance that way?

How many 2nd chances do we get? Do we get one for every major mistake? If so, is it still right to call it ‘2nd chance’?

I guess different people use their 2nd chances depending on their understanding of their past lives. Some use the last moment before their downfall to evaluate how to use their 2nd chances. And others use it to find reason why they failed.

Not everyone is given a 2nd chance, and not everyone is able to realise that a 2nd chance is given to them… but if you were given one, I hope that you’ll use it wisely, for 2nd chance is just exactly what it is – a second chance.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Overtake

I was in a freeway driving home when a cab cut me without any signal. I was furious at the cab driver and I wanted to get even. I changed lane, drove faster and tried to overtake the cab. When my window is paralleled to the driver, I gave him the look, cut him and slowed down. He horned at me, opened his window and yell. I was feeling a different sort of happiness when I noticed the driver changed lane. I knew he wants to overtake and so I drove faster…. then I lost him.

Knowing that I’ve lost the cab driver I went back to my normal driving speed. My wife, oblivious to what happened, is asleep next to me taking advantage of the few minute-rest she gets. As I looked at my wife I thought - she’s peaceful and beautiful, I told myself – God I love my wife so much. But why did I react to the cab driver like the way I reacted to him few minutes ago? Why didn’t I just let him go, instead I got even? What if something wrong happened that costed me my wife or my life, what will I do?

More often in our lives we react based on impulse. We often forgot the repercussions of our actions, we failed to see the ‘after’ part of our impulsive decision, we are more focused on the ‘now’. My ‘now’ with the cab driver was to ‘get even’, if only I thought about the danger of getting even in the freeway my ‘now’ would have been – letting the cab driver go.

Good thing nothing wrong happened, no one got hurt.

I was almost at the exit when I saw the cab driver behind me, he changed lane, overtook me. I know he didn’t notice me because he didn’t say anything nor blink his headlights, he just went pass me. I wanted to say sorry for my reaction but I’m close to my exit, and so I let him go.

I wanted to tell him what he did was not safe and could lead to accidents. I wanted to tell him to stop cutting drivers as it doesn’t just put himself in danger; he also endangers his passengers and other drivers. But he’s gone and I’m exiting.

How do I stop myself from reacting based on impulse? How can I get myself into a routine to think about the repercussions of my actions? How do I make my moral compass points correctly, always?

I’m relieved that nothing happened and we got home safely, though I’m not happy with my initial reaction to the driver. I knew I didn’t do the right thing, otherwise I wouldn’t be feeling this way.