Opinion: Reputation key to plugging the New Zealand brain drain as nurses flee to Australia

OPINION:

There’s no quick fix - or plug - for the brain drain in New Zealand.

This week, it has been reported nearly 5000 nurses have registered to work in Australia since August, highlighting a major challenge faced by the health sector, which is already short of thousands of nurses alone - not to mention doctors and other specialists.

Nurses are being lured across the ditch by short-term contracts reportedly paying anywhere from about $3750 to $8500 a week, depending on factors such as seniority, expertise and contract length.

Contracts started at about a four-week duration and went to about 18 months, and nurses could visit home during that time.

There is a huge nursing shortage in Australia that is contributing to delays in emergency departments, surgery and many other services.

However, it seems to simply be able to offer nurses something New Zealand can’t, and that’s more money.

It comes after multiple teacher strikes took place across the country last month, calling for more school funding, better pay and higher staff numbers.

Tauranga’s Jessie Fauntleroy, a Year 9 dean and sixth-year teacher originally from Australia, told the Bay of Plenty Times she earned over $10,000 less than a first-year teacher in Australia.

A first-year teacher in Australia bags $80,500, but Fauntleroy was on less than $70,000 here.

It would be pretty tempting to jump the ditch for that kind of money.

I believe other factors are contributing to the drain, including the rising cost of living — up 8.2 per cent last year — and people feeling New Zealand may not be as safe as it once was.

For example, rising retail crime has particularly been in the spotlight, with data released last month showing there were 292 retail crime incidents every day in 2022, up from 140 per day in 2018. Stores are being burgled or robbed in broad daylight, even in busy public areas.

Police say better reporting is a contributor, and the Government is also pumping millions of dollars into additional security measures for at-risk retailers. But for some, New Zealand’s reputation as a safe country will be dented.

And, of course, some people simply want to experience living and working in another country.

Whatever the reasons for skilled people leaving New Zealand, it’s clear something needs to be done to address the problem, and I’m hoping to see bold ideas coming through ahead of the election.

New Zealand, after all, beats other countries in many areas attractive to skilled workers.

From its wide open spaces, beaches and progressive society to the non-deadly wildlife and laid-back, friendly culture - there’s no better place to enjoy a healthy work-life balance.

It’s unlikely New Zealand will ever be able to compete on wages with other countries given our small population and place in the world, but the key to getting people to stay or migrate here is helping workers appreciate the great things about it.