Working in Sydney

Working? But we are on vacation😨!

Car purchase, gasoline, scuba diving, eating out, camping ground. The expenses are numerous. Although we filled our vacation fund well before our departure, it still feels strange to only see expenses and no income in the account.

Our visas also state 'Working Holiday' and it is somehow part of it.

Okay, how do we find work then?

We took care of the necessary paperwork (tax number, etc.) on the side in the past weeks. It was all quick and easy online (take notes, Germany - you can learn something here). Since we also wanted to work on construction sites (higher hourly wage), we also had to obtain a 'White card'. It's a kind of safety training that takes a morning and ends with going through a text and filling out a multiple choice test (while having the text on the table - it's allowed to look up). In the practical part, we had to show how to put on a helmet and wear a high visibility vest - no joke.

And did it work?

In the end, we did find something: a company called Greenstaff promises 24 AUD per hour, 8 hours/day, 5 days a week - that sounded good! But at the interview, the disappointment came: it's a labour hiring company. In plain terms, it means no permanent employment but day labor - you receive a job offer by SMS every day for the next day, if there is work available. You only find out what kind of work it is when you arrive. With no other options, we decided to give it a try, what did we have to lose?

In the end, we have to say that we were quite satisfied. Most days, we had work.

So, what kind of work did we do?

The variety was huge:

For 8 days, we dug up an irrigation system for a cricket field. The soil was sticky clay that we had to work on with crowbars before we could dig anything. It was extremely exhausting and hot.

We quit that job after a few days because our supervisor tried to cheat us on overtime pay and Caro didn't enjoy working at the gate. In an elite private school, we prepared planters for the roof of the new gymnasium. It was one of the best jobs and the view was amazing.

In addition, there were a few smaller jobs for a few days: planting gardens or simply cleaning up debris at a construction site.

And what is our conclusion after 5 weeks of work?

- It was quite exhausting at times, but overall, we had fun. It was a nice change of pace.

- Compared to traveling, we were able to speak English much more and gain a better understanding of how Aussies tick - at least those on construction sites.

- The minimum wage in Australia is slightly better than in Germany: 19.49 AUD per hour (approx. 11.60€)

- As a 'casual' (which can be translated as day laborer), you don't get vacation or paid sick days, but you get 25% more pay

- Annual increases for the next years have already been determined
- For overtime, Sunday work, and late/night work, you get good money, which can quickly reach +50% or +100%. German hospitals can only dream of that.

- One thing we didn't like was that not only backpackers work as 'casual' but also many Australians make it their main job. Without real employee protection - a 'mentality' that, in our opinion, is more similar to that of the USA.

Furthermore, our bosses were usually nice but completely clueless:

Them: 'Fill up that hole'

Us: 'Sure, let's get started'

Them: '...Oops, there's still a cable missing! Can you dig it up again? 😅' - happened multiple times🙄

Them: 'Oh, we accidentally dug up a power cable...that shouldn't have happened...uhm...could you expose it a bit so we can see what it is?'

Us: 'Is there electricity running through it?'

Them: 'Uhm...good point, let's ask the electricians first'
Us: 😑

And - less funny - we had a French boss:

Him: 'Please use wheelbarrows to move that earth mound to the front of the house'
Us: 'Of course, let's go!'
Him, after 15 minutes: 'Oh, and if you find any fabric like this, throw it in the red bucket'
Us: 'What fabric?'

Him: 'Well, I don't know the name but it's definitely unhealthy'

Us: 'Do you mean asbestos?'

Him: 'No...uhm...I'm not sure...or uh...yes, it's asbestos, I think.' And he pulled out a large piece from the bucket.
He didn't understand why we didn't want to continue working, but he was still nice when we left. Our company took care of him later.

It should be noted that Australians have many problems with asbestos. It occurs as a mineral in some regions and used to be mined there. And even though it is no longer used in construction, it can still be found in many old buildings, more than in Germany. Dealing with it requires a qualification. And there are many large companies that specialize in clearing contaminated asbestos soil. They even advertise on the highways. So, it's not a niche problem.

This guy, however, seemed to not fully grasp the problem. As we left, he continued digging without any respiratory protection, and from the way he talked to us about the topic, it seemed like he had always done it that way, many times before. Even when we tried to explain to him again why he should stop, he didn't seem to care. It's frustrating, especially because he had young children.