With unemployment at 5.4% and falling, many Kiwi employers are beginning to look to the Australian workforce to fill positions within their organisations.
Nigel Bickle, of New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), said that although the economy is thriving, Kiwi businesses need skilled and experienced employees to keep up with the rate at which it is growing.
The MBIE wants to attract workers from Australia, and in attempts to do so is holding the first ever official New Zealand job fair in Sydney on 29-30 November.
Bickle told
HRM that he’d like to see Australia and New Zealand become a single labour market.
“It’s a chance for skilled workers to meet directly with employers who can talk quite knowledgeably about living and working in New Zealand,” he said. “This is an opportunity for employers to connect with potential candidates in a real way.”
He added that employers can also use the expo to network with skilled workers from Australia’s Kiwi expat community.
“There are a lot of skilled jobs being created in New Zealand, so the move over is a serious option for Kiwis coming back – and it’s also a viable opportunity for Aussies to cross over either temporarily or permanently.”
HRM spoke with Heather Douglas, New Zealand recruitment manager at Beca New Zealand, about her plans and expectations of the expo.
“As a business we recruit internationally, and this is a good way to meet face to face with candidates,” she told
HRM. “We’re quite keen to talk to people based in Australia – not just Aussies but the expat community as well. The expo is a great opportunity to build a talent pipeline and make a connection face-to-face – which is more effective than just looking at a CV.”
So how do Beca plan to stand out at the expo?
“We see our people as our asset so we’ve got great people attending,” she said. “We want to make it easy for people to connect to us.”
The Sydney New Zealand Job Expo is being run by MBIE and WorkingIn, and will host over 30 Kiwi companies, including leading employers
Trade Me, Datacom, ERoad and more. Many employers plan to host walk-in interviews and make offers to suitable candidates at the event.
“The purpose of the New Zealand Job Expo is to help New Zealand businesses attract the best talent to fill roles,” said Event organiser Scott Mathieson. “There are various fast growing companies that need talented and skilled employees to continue to grow.”
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