Adelaide's closed shop mentality - some interesting reading for newcomers.

Prior to arriving in Adelaide, I would get frustrated with the negative comments on here about finding work and the "country-town" mentality. I'm a determined person and never saw failure as an option. As a potential migrant, filled with excitement, expectation, anticipation all you want to here is how great your journey is going to be (with some added reality every now and then!). So, when you read all the doom and gloom messages about the employment situation it can become quite disheartening and we arrived full of optimism and positive energy, determined to make this work. Fast forward 6 months of living in Adelaide and we have experienced both the good and bad sides to SA. On a positive note, I secured work (as the main visa applicant as an HR Manager) very quickly in spite of many locals expressing surprise as there are many unemployed HR professionals here. However, on closer examination this is largely due to the skill set you have and SA is currently in need of strategic, forward thinking HR professionals (in fact anyone forward thinking with some vision could add value!). It was a great start. We've been socially active, enjoying everything that SA can offer and we remained positive that something would come up for my husband who had a wealth of experience in Operations/ Transport Management and after a 25 year career in the armed forces.

However, fast forward to now and I have a very disillusioned husband at home. Despite countless applications, many for roles which he is overqualified for, he can't even get a response, not even a courtesy rejection email for many roles!. He goes along to Agencies who fill him with false hope about potentially ideal roles and how wonderful his experience and knowledge is, only to never to hear from them again. He makes calls, that are never returned. He's been advised to 'water down' his CV so he comes across as less experienced as Adelaide employers don't like to feel threatened. He's tried to reach out and network only to receive no responses to his telephone calls or emails. I came across some articles by Malcolm King which provide interesting reading on the future of SA...and if things continue as they are....it's not great!

This article was written in 2013 and fast forward 3 years...nothing has changed. I have spoken to many business professionals in Adelaide and there is a recognition that attitudes and mindsets need to change, but no appetite for it, it would seem. After all, once you are safely secure within a job...why worry? It's the old..."I'm alright Jack" syndrome. I have a job so all is ok in my world...so long as that world continues to function and thrive, but for how much longer? We will continue to strive to secure work in SA as we like what Adelaide can offer, but there will come a point in time when we may have no choice but to follow the exodus to the East and so the drain of new ideas and change to reinvigorate Adelaide will continue. My other half is already exploring opportunities in Melbourne. It's sad and I'm sure does not apply to all who come over here, as there are many success stories. Opportunities exist in Aged Care and the Trades to some degree. In fact we have been informed that there are roles in logistics, but only if you know someone who knows someone! This is a very real issue and one which you should be aware of before embarking on that journey. Don't let it deter you but just be aware that it may not be all plain sailing and have a contingency.

Exactly What I done. Moved East and Never looked back. For some reason this post came up in my email feed. I've posted many posts on how I feel about the place I'm not going to waste time doing that again... People say the grass is not always greener. Oh how wrong was they. To each and there own. I respect people's perceptions are different. Good luck.

Exactly What I done. Moved East and Never looked back. For some reason this post came up in my email feed. I've posted many posts on how I feel about the place I'm not going to waste time doing that again... People say the grass is not always greener. Oh how wrong was they. To each and there own. I respect people's perceptions are different. Good luck.

Good to hear you are enjoying life in your new home Hope the weather there is better than it is here atm? Spring is late arriving here in Adelaide this year.

Sadly your husbands experience isn't unusual. It does happen to migrants and people need to factor in and prepare for this sort of thing possibly happening. I know its not the case for everyone and it can be hard to have that worse case scenario plan decided before you even migrate, but its a conversation worth having and having a few times.

The boys club thing I hear said and heard this long before moving here but then I've Aus family and even they say it and its spoken about in their lines of work as happening, so its not only affecting migrants but the locals seeking work also. The old who you know thing which can be bloody horrible to come up against. However, I also know plenty of locals who don't follow or stand for this boys club thing and who seek people outside of their network IYKWIM. It may be what line of work you are in as to how the finding a job process goes. Or just who happens to be the one doing the hiring. I don't think there are any definitive answers.

I really hope your husband can find something be it in Adelaide or interstate.

Hi Wozzie2202,

My current situation is similar to yours whereby I am in possession of a 489 visa matched to an HR Advisor role. We haven't made the move to SA yet but are hoping to soon. Would you mind if I contacted you privately to discuss this further as I think you could offer me some great advice.

Thank you in advance.

Laura T

I have recently moved to Adelaide as well. Absolutely difficult to find a new job. Fortunately I've found a team that did wonders for me to secure several job interviews. I  think they're also affiliated with this NSW based company through I wasn't sure.