Most New Zealand employers emphasise four basic requirements for migrants to get work in New Zealand. We summarise these and discuss one of them, the need for excellent English language, in a little more detail.
If you're an immigrant seeking work in New Zealand, agencies and employers we interviewed emphasised the following points:
In the great majority of cases, you must have excellent English language skills (fluency).
Get your qualifications approved by the NZ Qualifications Authority.
You must have positive, accurate references from your former employer.
You must have a valid work permit or residence permit, although depending on demand, a number of employers will be happy to deal with immigration procedures in order for you to work for them.
People who meet these requirements will usually get work in New Zealand without too much difficulty.
The Need for Excellent English
The need for excellent English was emphasised by changes to immigration policy in November 2002. The government raised the minimum English IELTS level for Skilled Category migrants from 5.0 to 6.5. The Government's position is that it's pointless for immigrants to come to New Zealand to be unemployed - and that's what tends to happen if English language skills are lacking.
Even before the government acted, the need for excellent English language skills had been highlighted by a survey reported in the New Zealand Herald.
The survey discovered that English was a big problem for Asian migrants. When they first arrived, many felt let down because they thought cultural barriers prevented career success. They thought they:
Were not given enough responsibility.
Needed to take jobs not related to their overseas experience.
Asians thought that New Zealand business people:
Placed too much importance on language skills and local experience.
Placed too little importance on overseas qualifications, skills and experience.
They found this frustrating because New Zealand immigration is points-based, yet employers did not seem to value skills, qualifications and experience as much as the points system did.
Your Accent
New Zealand, British, Australian and American accents dominate the television here. New Zealanders hear these accents every day. If you speak with one of these accents, you will sound familiar to employers. South Africans speak with what language experts describe as "a similar colonial twang to New Zealanders and Australians," hence the South African accent isn't a barrier to communication in New Zealand.
If you are Asian, one of the most important things you can do is improve your English. Even if you are fluent, don't forget your accent.
Dr Indraka Fernando, President of the Overseas Doctors Association, has said; "Doctors have to pass English exams at a higher level to register in New Zealand than in Australia or the United States. Consequently, foreign-trained doctors in the New Zealand health system speak very good English, although their accents sometimes made them difficult for New Zealanders to understand."
The message is, don't worry if your accent isn't strong but if your accent is very strong, it makes it harder for New Zealanders to understand you. And that could make it harder for you to get a good job.
Of course, you'll also have to cope with the New Zealand accent. You will meet some New Zealanders who speak so quickly or so indistinctly that nearly all migrants will have difficulty understanding them. Thankfully, this shouldn't happen often.
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