The relatively high cost of living and low unemployment rate hasn’t deterred international workers from looking for jobs in Australia, according to new research.
Australia is the 12th most desirable work location in the world, according to new research from Indeed Hiring Lab.
The global research institute found that 11.3% of all the searches for jobs in Australia came from overseas, with the most common countries of origin being the US, the UK, India and Canada.
The findings coincide with a fall in living costs in Australian cities, making the country more popular for expats.
According to the Mercer Cost of Living Survey, Sydney has dropped from ninth place to 26th on the list of the most expensive cities for expats, while Melbourne has fallen from 16 to 33 and Canberra ranks outside the top 50.
Chris McDonald, country manager for Indeed Australia and New Zealand, said that external competition for jobs within Australia was relatively high, given its remote geographic location and tough visa rules.
However, the research also showed that 24.9% of Australian workers were searching for overseas roles, compared with a global average of about one in 10 workers.
“I think we need to look at Australia as a country,” said McDonald.
“They’re really good travellers anyway and demographically, post-education people looking to maybe travel a bit are naturally going to start their job search online for places overseas. In reality, that would formulate a large part of that.”
The US was the most common destination Australian jobseekers looked at, while India was a surprise second.
“We had to dive into that and see what it really meant,” said McDonald.
“What was quite clear was that a lot of the industries in which people were looking for roles in India are in IT and tech which we know economically right now in India are going through some very good transitions.”
For HR professionals, the US and UK were the search destinations of choice.
“It’s logical that there would be transferable skills between countries like Australia, the UK and the US and maybe even places like India as well. If you’re in a sector like HR, career opportunities can very much be global.”
McDonald said the types of roles Australians were looking for overseas could indicate where industries were losing talent.
“Mining has been under some pressure for a number of years and they’re [mining workers] looking heavily in Canada right now for mining and engineering project management-type roles.”
Would you consider moving overseas to progress your career, or does Australia provide enough opportunities?
The global research institute found that 11.3% of all the searches for jobs in Australia came from overseas, with the most common countries of origin being the US, the UK, India and Canada.
The findings coincide with a fall in living costs in Australian cities, making the country more popular for expats.
According to the Mercer Cost of Living Survey, Sydney has dropped from ninth place to 26th on the list of the most expensive cities for expats, while Melbourne has fallen from 16 to 33 and Canberra ranks outside the top 50.
Chris McDonald, country manager for Indeed Australia and New Zealand, said that external competition for jobs within Australia was relatively high, given its remote geographic location and tough visa rules.
However, the research also showed that 24.9% of Australian workers were searching for overseas roles, compared with a global average of about one in 10 workers.
“I think we need to look at Australia as a country,” said McDonald.
“They’re really good travellers anyway and demographically, post-education people looking to maybe travel a bit are naturally going to start their job search online for places overseas. In reality, that would formulate a large part of that.”
The US was the most common destination Australian jobseekers looked at, while India was a surprise second.
“We had to dive into that and see what it really meant,” said McDonald.
“What was quite clear was that a lot of the industries in which people were looking for roles in India are in IT and tech which we know economically right now in India are going through some very good transitions.”
For HR professionals, the US and UK were the search destinations of choice.
“It’s logical that there would be transferable skills between countries like Australia, the UK and the US and maybe even places like India as well. If you’re in a sector like HR, career opportunities can very much be global.”
McDonald said the types of roles Australians were looking for overseas could indicate where industries were losing talent.
“Mining has been under some pressure for a number of years and they’re [mining workers] looking heavily in Canada right now for mining and engineering project management-type roles.”
Would you consider moving overseas to progress your career, or does Australia provide enough opportunities?
