New Zealand Paid Work

The New Zealand Paid Work package gives you a hassle-free start to your working holiday in New Zealand, making it easy to meet new people and find paid work.

You will fly into Auckland airport and there will be a bus waiting for you to take you to your hostel. Our hostel is right in the heart of Auckland - a great location to get to grips with the city and the Kiwi way of life. While you are staying here you will have help finding a job and you have will a detailed orientation session with a local NZ co-ordinator.

An orientation will be held on the first business day after you arrive into Auckland. The session is packed with loads of useful information including info about jobs; travelling around New Zealand and for some the most important advice – where the best bars and clubs are in Auckland! There will be plenty of opportunities to ask questions. They will also give you all the following items and information.

• 1 hour internet access
• 1 month luggage storage
• Work NZ Handbook with diary and information about living in NZ
• Complimentary drink voucher at hostel bar

Within your first few days of arrival, you will also have a one to one meeting with a member of the jobs team. They will discuss with you your previous work experience and help amend your CV if necessary. This is also your opportunity to let them know what your preferences are with regards to work. They will then start to search for suitable jobs for you and it won’t be long before you have a job offer! 

This programme includes a 12-month job finding service. We have a team that are specialists at finding jobs for NZ working holidaymakers. You could get a job in the fields of labour and construction, temping, bar/café work, fruit picking (seasonal), travel and tourism, trade positions, health sectors work, clerical/office admin work, accountancy and many more. There are jobs all over the country to choose from, you needn't be restricted to one area!

Another part of the jobs service is assistance with sorting out the important stuff, like sorting out a bank account, getting a tax number, preparing a CV and arranging interviews. The job office will have, on average, between 60 and 120 jobs for you to choose from (though this does depend on the season). Due to a shortage of skilled workers in NZ there is currently work available in the skilled fields, from IT to healthcare and forestry to accounting.

Labouring and Construction

Work of this nature tends to be weather dependent, so there are generally more jobs in the summer than the winter. Work can mostly be found within the cities, but if it is outside of the city, you will find that your employer will provide return transport for you.

Hospitality

The hospitality industry is one of the big job providers for travellers. Jobs in this industry include hotel reception jobs, working in a bar/restaurant, kitchen work. Most of these jobs are found around city centres so transport is not a problem.

Short and Long term temping

Temping encompasses all different types of office work, such as IT, Graphic Design, telesales, sales and promotion, accounts, banking and even personal assistant work. These jobs are again focused around city centres and are the most popular working options, as the longer/short term contracts are reasonably flexible.

Home help and Au Pair

This is a great choice for anyone who has had experience working with people, particularly children. You'll get to live with a New Zealand family and see their way of life and you might even be lucky enough to get a free holiday away with the family!

Farm Work Experience

Live on a Kiwi farm with a bit of manual farm work. Farm work can be paid or it can be voluntary in exchange for free accommodation and food. Just like when you are looking for work in this country, you will need to take some copies of your CV with you, which should have two e-mail addresses of previous employers for reference purposes.

With the right motivation and attitude your working experiences in New Zealand will be positive and fulfilling. Be flexible. You never know where your job will take you unless you give it a go. People often refuse jobs because they don’t like the sound of the work or that it isn’t what they are used to doing at home. However, you never know when the next job will come along so make the most of every opportunity to learn and to earn some money. Just think how much more you will appreciate those dollars when you want to do any of the adrenaline fuelled activities New Zealand is known for or enjoying a cold beer and watching the sun set on another perfect day of travelling.

Clothing

You will need to have the appropriate clothing for the work you do. This may involve purchasing new clothes if you do not have them with you. In general you will need the following:

• Steel toe-capped boots for labouring
• Closed toe black shoes, black trousers/skirt, white shirt for hospitality work
• Smart office clothing and closed toe, polished shoes for office and call centre work
• Kitchen whites for cook/chef work

Apart from labouring / manual work, most jobs require that you have neat hair and clothing. Facial piercing and outrageous hair are usually not accepted on hospitality and office positions.

CV
You must take a CV, or Resumé, as its known in New Zealand. It should be kept to a maximum of two pages and it should include your contact details in New Zealand and your past work experience. Also bring at least four passport photos.