Wellington offers free holidays for jobseekers

THE government will pay for flights and accommodation — all you have to do is go for a job interview.

Wellington is looking to add another 100 to its population of 405,000.

FANCY a free holiday to New Zealand?

All you have to do is go for a job interview while you’re there.

Eager to draw the world’s best tech talent to capital city Wellington — already the island nation’s tech hub and home to industry-leading firms like Weta Digital and Xero — our neighbours across the ditch are offering 100 job applicants the “career trip of a lifetime”.

The LookSee Wellington program, a collaboration between the New Zealand government, Wellington Regional Economic Development Agency, Workhere New Zealand and NZTech, will pay for flights and accommodation for the lucky job seekers to attend four days of prearranged job interviews, meet-ups and exploration between May 8-11.

“At the end of the week there’ll be offers to jobs you never knew existed in a place with a lifestyle you never thought possible,” the LookSee Wellington website says.

“Wellington is the South Pacific’s tech and innovation capital, bubbling with innovative tech companies developing leading edge solutions and exporting them to the world. Our tech industry is flying along and we need more people.”

To take part, you simply create a profile on the LookSee website, answer some questions and upload your resume. Participating companies then nominate which applicants they are interested in interviewing in person. The 100 applicants with the most nominations will then be offered a trip.

Successful applicants will each score “at least three job interviews, possibly more”, but no one is guaranteed a job. During the week, the “Lookseers” are required to meet all employers that expressed an interest and to “genuinely assess what they offer as a potential employer”.

“There will be a small number of other events that we would strongly recommend you attend as they are designed to help you find out important information about immigration, relocation and settlement in Wellington,” the website says.

“And then there’ll be social and optional events that we’d encourage you to participate in to make the most of your time in the city and to get a feel for what it’d be like to live here. But there’ll also be plenty of time to roam and do your own thing — we want you to have a genuine ‘looksee’ for yourself.”

But is there actually anything to do in Wellington? According to Wellington itself: “Loads! Wellington is famously labelled ‘the coolest little capital in the world’, and is known for its buzzing coffee and craft beer, active outdoor lifestyle, and vibrant arts scene.”

You don’t have to worry about getting shanked, either. “Relative to other places Wellington is a very safe city at night, but we still encourage you to be sensible and prudent,” the website says. “Street crime is very rare in Wellington.”

Cost-of-living and lifestyle are touted as major draws. According to number-crunching website Numbeo, consumer prices in the NZ capital are 9 per cent cheaper than Sydney, rent is 48 per cent cheaper, and overall purchasing power is 8 per cent higher.

And for Sydneysiders whingeing about $1.1 million median house prices, spare a thought for Wellingtonians, outraged at out-of-control house price growth which pushed median prices to a record $NZ530,000 ($493,000) in December.

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Originally published as Wellington offers free holidays for jobseekers