Many clients and people that we speak to advise us that they are giving up on the Australian job sponsorship route for migrating to Australia, because recruitment agencies in Australia have advised them that:
“It’s just too hard to find a sponsor”
“You need to have local experience”
“Australian companies aren’t sponsoring right now”
“You are better to wait until you arrive in Australia”
Why do recruitment agencies give this advice? The reason is because, although they are specialists in their field and know the Australian market well, when they introduce job seekers to their clients (ie Australian companies), the recruiters receive a fee from that client. Recruiters therefore want to take the quickest and easiest route for receiving their fee. I know this sounds harsh, however, in their defense, recruiters receive hundreds of applications for jobs they advertise, and they need to somehow cut these applications down to a select few to introduce to their client. Further, recruitment agencies need to have met you face to face before they can introduce you to their clients, as a matter of policy.
Therefore, job seekers who require sponsorship, are not yet in Australia, and/or have not had work experience in Australia in the past; will for the most part, be screened out of the recruitment process by recruiters, as they opt to work with candidates whom will be less effort for them.
This is not to say that recruiters have no feelings or compassion. They are simply doing business the best they know how. Having spent several years in the position of having to screen CVs and select the most suitable for the position, I understand the process that recruiters go through, and therefore I feel my opinion is justified.
Nadine Myers, Australian Emigration Job Search Strategist with Nab That Job in Australia! advises not to be deterred by the advice that Australian recruiters give you. Ms Myers and her team work with foreign nationals every day, and have clients who have successfully found job sponsorship whilst applying from overseas, and who have not previously had local Australian experience.
It must be stressed though, finding job sponsorship in Australia is no easy feat.
“It takes a lot of hard work, dedication and a positive and resilient attitude, and even then, there is chance you may fail”, says Ms Myers.
“You have to know what you want, you have to go after it, and you have to know that no matter what adversities you are faced with now, you will reach your goal.”
Ms Myers advises not to believe that it will happen over night. “Finding a job in Australia, including sponsorship, is a process that we help you through. It starts with ensuring that your CV is competitive, that you have a strong job search strategy. You also need to continually and systematically tap into the hidden job market – that means looking for those jobs that are not advertised. They are out there, my friends!” says Ms Myers.
Many Australian companies now have sophisticated recruitment systems whereby they accept applications year-round from job seekers, whether they have vacancies or not. The Australian companies then access this ‘pool’ of talent when positions become available in their company, and hence, they often do not need to advertise their vacancy.
Many Australian companies also offer their employees referral fees if they introduced someone they know to the company, which is very attractive and powerful, and can also mean that vacancies are filled from within the company before there is any need to advertise the position.
Networking and tapping into this hidden job market in Australia is therefore key for foreign nationals in particular, who are seeking employment in Australia.
“There are thousands of skilled job seekers all over the world who are seeking employment in Australia, and my mission is to ensure that these people do not give up on their dream of migrating to Australia”, says Ms Myers.
If you are having trouble finding a job in Australia, the first step to improving your success rate is to do Nab That Job in Australia’s quick CV assessment which will help you to determine whether your CV is competitive in the Australian job market. This assessment will lead you through a series of questions that will uncover what you need to do to improve your success rate when seeking employment in Australia. The assessment tool will then offer you your next steps, depending on your particular visa status.
Click here to find out if your CV is competitive now
