Sonny Shelford is living free of charge while working as a trade assistant in Western Australia and reckons he should have left Whangarei years ago.
He is among about half a dozen Northlanders who took up job offers in May 2011 to work for a new gas plant in Dongara,351km north west of Perth.
Mr Shelford was among hundreds recruited by former Kaitaia man Douglas Foster, a director of Reciprocus Pty Ltd in Myaree, to fill large numbers of vacancies for skilled tradesmen in the Western Australian mining, oil and gas industries last year.
More than 2000 job seekers attended seminars Reciprocus held in Kaikohe and Ruakaka last week seeking people to work in Australian mines.
Mr Shelford said had it not been for Mr Foster, he would still be working at a cement factory in Whangarei and struggling to pay off his bills. In Dongara, he is earning more than twice he received in Whangarei.
"My roster is 28 days on, seven days off when I come over to visit my family and friends in Whangarei. The money over here is hard to believe," Mr Shelford said.
"There's plenty of work here ... at least 10 years worth of work available right now and I'd say to people in Northland, if you get a chance to come over, take it.
"You can always go back home. If you don't take up the offers you'll miss out big time. There's more variety, more selection of work."
He said the only impediment for Northlanders from taking up job offers in the area he was in was the searing heat, which could hit 45C. Mr Shelford lives in a working camp where he does not have to pay for food or accommodation and says even their laundry gets done.
Every room has Sky TV, he said."I am loving my job and roster and wished I'd done this years ago. The working conditions and pay are a dream or I wouldn't be here doing it."
Up to 60,000 workers are needed in the oil, gas, mining and construction sectors in Western Australia that pays between $70,000 and $150,000.
Rio Tinto - a world leader in finding, mining and processing mineral resources- needs thousands of employees in a mine it is working on.
