Find Out How to Get a Job and Work in Auckland

Employment in Auckland

The city of Auckland is the main business hub of New Zealand, and as such most residents benefit from a high level of income compared to the national average. Particular specialisms of importance to New Zealand include the technical and trade sectors, which means that office workers make up a large proportion of the city’s workforce. These office workers are mainly focused in the areas surrounding Auckland CBD, though they are also spread out around the city as a whole.

Many important international corporations also have offices in Auckland CBD, and as such office space is often rather expensive for those employers who are hoping to set up a business. Similarly, wages are relatively high across Auckland, especially for those in the financial services, tourism, and skilled work sectors.

Local Economy

Auckland’s economy is bolstered by a thriving real estate sector, as well as strong financial and professional service sectors. As a result of being New Zealand’s largest economic powerhouse, Aucklanders generally earn more than those in other parts of the country, but also have to pay higher rents and house prices as a result. Youth unemployment is also a larger problem here than in the rest of the country, but retail sales and profits are soaring upwards as a result of population expansion and general wealth in the area.

The government occasionally puts out calls for skilled workers in specific areas and actively recruits expats to fill the gap. With the biggest sectors in the country being finance, tourism, insurance, and business services, however, many skill sets are welcome in New Zealand. As an English speaking country, there is little opportunity for expats hoping to teach English as a second language, though many students from Central Asia do travel to Auckland to learn English at university, so there may be opportunities for expat lecturers to help teach these students.

Job Hunting in Auckland

If you are an expat seeking work in Auckland, it is advisable to search before you move, as it will be easier to get a visa if you have a promise of work from a company willing to sponsor you before you move to New Zealand.

For those that have already arrived in the city and are looking to find work, there are many traditional routes into employment that are open to you. Looking in local newspapers, magazines, and shop windows is a very traditional way of searching for work, but can often reap benefits. The New Zealand Herald is the country’s most popular newspaper and is based in Auckland, while the Aucklander focuses more on local news and opportunities for work.

SEEK is New Zealand’s top job site, but there are also many other websites that advertise jobs in the Auckland area, many of which can be found easily after a quick search online.

Work Permits

As well as offering a range of different visas for expats who wish to move to Auckland on a permanent basis, the government also offers a range of working visas. In order to apply for a temporary work visa in New Zealand, you need to either have been offered employment in the country, be coming to the country for a specific reason or event, want to gain work experience or work after studying in the country, or want to join an existing partner and work while doing so.

If you wish to train or study in Auckland while here on such a temporary work visa, you may do so for a maximum of three months, or up to three months in every 12 month slot if your visa has been granted over several years. For longer periods of study, a student visa will be needed.

In general, in order to get a work permit and a job in New Zealand on a semi-permanent basis, you have to have essential skills that New Zealand has a shortage of at that particular time. If there is a skills shortage in a certain sector within the country, then employers are allowed to look abroad in order to fill the gap.