# Work / life balance?



## shammy (May 30, 2013)

How is the work / life balance better in NZ? My hubby was wondering this and I think he's got a point - as I understand it, in NZ we can expect an average full-time working week of 40 hours and 20 days holiday per year, but only after working there for a year. Here in the UK full-time is 37.5 hours (only 1/2 an hour a day difference, I know, but still a difference) and we get more holiday, which you start to accrue and are able to take straight away. Hubby gets 25 days, and I get 13 plus 8 bank hol days (I work part time, and am able to take the actual bank holidays as if they are my days off, and then choose when to take the extra holidays. Pro rata my leave entitlement is 22.6 days). Plus we know we will get paid less for the equivalent job.

Just wondering if those of you living in NZ would say you have a better work / life balance, and if so, how? Thanks x


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## topcat83 (Apr 16, 2009)

shammy said:


> How is the work / life balance better in NZ? My hubby was wondering this and I think he's got a point - as I understand it, in NZ we can expect an average full-time working week of 40 hours and 20 days holiday per year, but only after working there for a year. Here in the UK full-time is 37.5 hours (only 1/2 an hour a day difference, I know, but still a difference) and we get more holiday, which you start to accrue and are able to take straight away. Hubby gets 25 days, and I get 13 plus 8 bank hol days (I work part time, and am able to take the actual bank holidays as if they are my days off, and then choose when to take the extra holidays. Pro rata my leave entitlement is 22.6 days). Plus we know we will get paid less for the equivalent job.
> 
> Just wondering if those of you living in NZ would say you have a better work / life balance, and if so, how? Thanks x


Hi there 
You're right about the 'normal' number of holidays and the working week - it is slightly less to our benefit than the UK equivalents. 

However, generally I have found that the number of hours you are expected to work as unpaid overtime is less, and the companies have much more understanding about 'work-life balance'. 
Of course this does depend on the company you end up in - so maybe I've been lucky.

Another observation - in Auckland people will start work at 9:00 am and finish at 5:30 to 6:00 pm. In Hamilton they'll start at 8:00 am and by 5:00 pm the office is like the Marie Celeste!


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## shammy (May 30, 2013)

In my job, the hours are different - I will be working shifts, although here it is common to be expected to stay beyond the end of a shift, so perhaps that will be a difference I will notice. Hubby isn't really expected to stay late but he'd be happy with starting and finishing a bit earlier. All depends on your job and the organisation you work for, I guess.

Is the 20 days holiday just a minimum, which could be more depending on the employer? And what do you do during your first year, before you've earned paid holidays? Do employers tend to allow unpaid time off? I hope they don't expect you to work a whole year with no time off?

Lol, haven't even got a job yet and already I'm after time off!


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## topcat83 (Apr 16, 2009)

shammy said:


> In my job, the hours are different - I will be working shifts, although here it is common to be expected to stay beyond the end of a shift, so perhaps that will be a difference I will notice. Hubby isn't really expected to stay late but he'd be happy with starting and finishing a bit earlier. All depends on your job and the organisation you work for, I guess.
> 
> Is the 20 days holiday just a minimum, which could be more depending on the employer? And what do you do during your first year, before you've earned paid holidays? Do employers tend to allow unpaid time off? I hope they don't expect you to work a whole year with no time off?
> 
> Lol, haven't even got a job yet and already I'm after time off!


Again, it depends on the employer. I negotiated a 25 days holiday allowance, and it worked that I could build up the days holiday from day 1. So after month 1, I had 2 days to play with, after 2 months I had 4 days etc.... But other places may be different. 
You may find that they'll allow you to take days off unpaid if they don't work the way I've said.


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## escapedtonz (Apr 6, 2012)

Personally I do think the work life balance here is far better.
Granted - on the whole we work longer hours and have less annual leave entitlement in NZ than the UK.

There are a number of reasons why I say this.

In my situation working shifts, we work a longer shift which gives more time off.
I work 4 on 4 off (2 days / 2 nights) so I work 48hrs every 8 days, but annually we work an average of 40hrs per week.
We aren't ever expected to stay behind and we are restricted with any additional hours or shifts we are allowed to do - i.e. under no circumstances are we to ever do 3 night shifts in a row!!! Wouldn't matter if they were desperate, my employer would fly someone down from our other office in Hamilton at cost of return flights, taxis, accommodation and all meal expenses before any of us were asked to work 3 nights in a row. Completely in breech of policy. We used to do up to 8 nights on the trot in the UK!!!

As soon as I started work I was told I would earn the right to time off as I went along and I have had my 4 weeks off in my first year or thereabouts. To be honest I don't really need to take that much time off due to my shifts unless I want a long run off and booking one shift run of 48hrs or 4 days gives me 12 days holiday.

Also companies seem to have a much better appreciation of employees personal time. 
Seems to be way more flexi-time and working from home schemes and there's also the daily morning and afternoon mandatory tea breaks 10am and 3pm!
There's also a monthly luncheon where one of the floors buys everyone lunch and a First Friday Drinks day where each dept takes it in turn buying pizzas & beer or something similar on the first Friday of every month after work.
It's like you are regularly forced to socialise!
We've also benefitted from having our tiny reception area quadruple in size and be completely refurbished which now incorporates a coffee shop but at zero cost as you have to make your own but its somewhere employees can go regularly whenever they want a break, chat to colleagues, invite friends / family in for a drink - I'm a bit stuck though along with my fellow shift colleagues as we must stay in our bubble for the whole shift. Can't go wandering about other than toilet breaks due to the importance of the job and ensuring we are always situationally aware and able to take over at a moments notice!!!

Also the weather is better than in the UK so it gives the sense that the great outdoors is more available.
Also there are more daylight hours. In the UK it goes dark at 4:00/4:30 pm in winter but here it's an hour later.
I'd just say on the whole, when considering employers, they make life way more family friendly in NZ than the UK.

Have a mate from the UK who's recently migrated to Christchurch and couldn't help but ring me the other day when in the middle of an industrial maintenance job was rung up by his boss & ordered to down tools and drive back to the depot........for BBQ and beer!!! 
Now come on, which employer would ever do that in the UK ?


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## mikesurf (Nov 7, 2012)

I worked in the health sector at Auckland hospital and in my opinion the work life balance was pretty bad. On many occasions we were expected to work late shifts and early shifts during the same week and on many occasions following each other , so we would do a late shift until 11pm and then do an early shift starting at 7am the following day. This was mostly down to a lack of staff as the amount of staff that we were losing per year was laughable. People were also always calling in sick as it was the only way to get time off work. Very often we needed to give 8 weeks notice in order to book a day off, this was ridiculous when you have children and other commitments to think about. Getting a day off during the summer holidays, forget it.


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## tamarisk (Apr 26, 2013)

shammy said:


> How is the work / life balance better in NZ? My hubby was wondering this and I think he's got a point - as I understand it, in NZ we can expect an average full-time working week of 40 hours and 20 days holiday per year, but only after working there for a year. Here in the UK full-time is 37.5 hours (only 1/2 an hour a day difference, I know, but still a difference) and we get more holiday, which you start to accrue and are able to take straight away. Hubby gets 25 days, and I get 13 plus 8 bank hol days (I work part time, and am able to take the actual bank holidays as if they are my days off, and then choose when to take the extra holidays. Pro rata my leave entitlement is 22.6 days). Plus we know we will get paid less for the equivalent job.
> 
> Just wondering if those of you living in NZ would say you have a better work / life balance, and if so, how? Thanks x


Our experience has been positive. Pay is about the same but cost of living seems less. There is definitely more acceptance of having days off - when my daughter was ill both my husband and I were encouraged to take days off by our employers. In the UK, there would always be a bit of resentment, a mealy-mouthed disapproval, no matter who was ill or how serious it was! Here, it was paid days too. As soon as we started working we started to accrue sick pay days which can be used for things like this. In the UK, we were allowed a couple of 'family days' a year for when the kids were sick, but after that it was unpaid leave.


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## shammy (May 30, 2013)

mikesurf said:


> I worked in the health sector at Auckland hospital and in my opinion the work life balance was pretty bad. On many occasions we were expected to work late shifts and early shifts during the same week and on many occasions following each other , so we would do a late shift until 11pm and then do an early shift starting at 7am the following day. This was mostly down to a lack of staff as the amount of staff that we were losing per year was laughable. People were also always calling in sick as it was the only way to get time off work. Very often we needed to give 8 weeks notice in order to book a day off, this was ridiculous when you have children and other commitments to think about. Getting a day off during the summer holidays, forget it.


I agree, this sounds pretty bad. And very familiar! I am a midwife in the NHS, currently on maternity leave. Every day it seems one of my colleagues puts a status on facebook about having survived their 10th shift in a row, or becoming nocturnal whilst working a whole month of nights. I suffered a great deal of pain during my pregnancy and my manager was extremely unsympathetic when I had to take some time off. I also had gestational diabetes and frequently worked long shifts without a proper break to eat or check my blood sugar. It yes several years ago now, but when I told my manager I planned to get married in august - in the school holidays - the whole department had to have a meeting about the fact that I wanted time off! It's rare to finish work on time and we are always expected to put work first, before anything else. 

Sounds like the only person who doesn't think it's better is talking about Auckland, am I right? We are not city people and will be aiming to settle somewhere else, although we're not sure where yet. Thanks for all your replies


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## Song_Si (Jun 11, 2010)

I believe it would be a huge generalisation to say it's 'better' - very dependent upon the employer and/or manager
I found that the more senior the role, the less balance there was, salary expectations that 'you're being paid well for this' 
And it can vary greatly - my last NZ job I shifted roles/departments with the same employer, about 800 staff, and from what I'd rate as 'very good' I went to 'dismal' in a small management team of about 20, where 6pm, 7pm (after a 7.30am start) was considered being 'part of the team', it prompted my departure as the impact on private/sporting life more than the job was worth. 
Choose carefully! Speak to other staff at a similar level you're more likely to get the reality than from someone afflicted with 'target-oriented-management-speak'

Equally I've had employers very supportive of my sporting needs . . . some encourage and support community/sporting activity.

****

the legal side of things:

The Holidays Act 2003 provides minimum legal entitlements to:


annual holidays
public holidays
sick leave
bereavement leave.

and a note on family/sick leave


> Sick leave can be used when an employee is sick or injured, or when the employee’s spouse or partner or a person who depends on the employee for care (such as a child or elderly parent) is sick or injured.
> source


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## lisamct (Nov 29, 2009)

shammy said:


> Sounds like the only person who doesn't think it's better is talking about Auckland, am I right? We are not city people and will be aiming to settle somewhere else, although we're not sure where yet. Thanks for all your replies


I can give you the perspective of a midwife in Auckland and previously Rotorua.

I don't find work/life balance much different to be honest. Yes there are less holidays but most DHB's (all 3 that I've worked for at least) allow you to take holidays as you accrue them (almost 2 days/month) or often take them before you earn them. You also earn extra days holidays for working public holidays and after a year if you work shifts.

We do work 40hrs a week if your full time, I find most midwives work 0,9 which works out at 36hrs (I think) I've never been expected to work past my shift finishing here and never had an issue getting requested time off (I accept I might have been lucky in this respect)

Sick leave is less, only 10 days paid sick leave with most DHB's before you have to take unpaid leave instead. 

If you work in the hospitals you will be expected to work shifts just like the UK and yep, that'll mean days and nights and often a mix of the 2 in the same week (24hr service and all that) but that's no different to the UK.

I think if your a shift worker there will always be an issue with work/life balance, its something you just kinda have to get used to if you want to do this kind of job. There are some more flexible managers about that can make things a bit easier, often in the smaller units I've found.


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