Your views on the Engineering sector

[JackoFam]

My husband has been setting up meetings with potential employers/networking opportunities for while we are in Australia on our validation trip in July. So far he has managed to setup 7-8 meetings through his own contacts/network BUT quite a few of them are pretty pessimistic on the consulting engineering sector at the moment.

 

My husband is a civil engineer with some pretty unique skills plus he has a pretty large international network to call on - they have all been invaluable so far in helping set up meetings and they all assure him that he should find a job, BUT it finding a job is always a worry especially surrounding engineering as a whole. He does feel that finding a job will require him to do lots of networking so that is what he is focussing on.

 

How are other engineers finding things?

 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2016 by JackoFam

[ottg]

Just to add to this topic. EA released their overview on 2016 infrastructure and construction in Australia developed through public & private sectors

More important is that the doc actually provides detailed information around trends across the different sectors & industries. This enables you to rather focus your energy on the WHAT when seeking consultancy opportunities. When looking for the WHERE the BCI Lead manager account above provides the contacts you seek as a starting point. Conclusion:

• Construction of roads in 2015 higher than 2010 but in comparison to population/economic growth it actually stagnated
• Railways construction increased
• Harbours - increased
• Water - public decrease but private increased
• Sewerage - public increased and private shows slight fall

https://issuu.com/engineersaustralia/docs/final_-_national_-_infrastructure_i

[ottg]

Although outside my field I do watch the industries closely. While I agree with LeonH's observations above I dont believe Seek is the best barometer. The best I can offer is by using this website. They cover all 4 major engineering disciplines. If following the news here for say 4 months you will get quickly an overview where things are happening.

https://sourceable.net/construction#

 

Another way is looking at new projects/current/planned in the pipeline but you will need an account to access the information.

However for a consultant its important to have access to the right tools. There are few available eg BCI Lead manager and others

http://www.bciaustralia.com/products/bci-leadmanager/

 

Another from a sales perspective: https://secure.projectory.com.au/content/about

 

 

 

[LeonH]

I would also love to hear views on this. The little bit of info I've been able to glean suggests to me that:

 

1. The job vacancies for civil engineering differ wildly between cities. My periodic browsing on seek.com.au suggests Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra are looking pretty ok, Melbourne ok-ish and WA not so good (in my field - water and drainage).

 

2. Mechanical and electrical engineering is possibly worse off than civil, and government expenditure on infrastructure is fair.

 

3. There is quite a bit of doom and gloom on the social parts of LinkedIn about consulting. The gripes are varied, but many are moaning about work being outsourced to foreigners in India, etc. Of course there is no shortage of doom and gloom in South Africa.

 

Looking forward to others' insight 

[JackoFam]

I also concur with LeonH - hoping civil will be ok, but we should have much more info after July once my husband has spoken to people on the ground so to speak.

 

Thanks for the articles @ottg.

[Pell]

My husband is finding in very difficult - in fact, in more than a year, he has not found a job in his field. He is also a civil engineer with pretty unique skills, and MBA and water engineering qualifications. but his age (60) is against him. 

He has worked in customer services, for a menial salary, because he has not been able to secure employment in his field. The standard refusal reasons are "no Australian experience", or if jobs are well below his level, "you're overqualified". Stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Edited May 5, 2016 by Pell

[Mel-B]

Wow Pell, that is a tough break. Have you looked at NZ? I have a friend with similar qualifications and she is employed by a government sector in NZ doing water drainage systems. Not EXACTLY what she was looking for or studied for but she is very happy. She is late 30's which may count in her favour, but your husband is obviously a goldmine of experience and knowledge. Keep us updated.

[JackoFam]

Oh no Pell - that is very tough for you guys. And disheartening for other engineers out there.

[Shellfish]

My neighbour (from the UK) is an engineer (sorry, they told me what sort but my memory) is having a tough time. He is on notice at the moment, cut down to 4 days per week and most of his team have been let go. We are in Melbourne, I believe all the work in his field in WA but i am subject to correction. 

 

[LeonH]

Thanks for that info Ottg. I found the "sourceable.net"  website pretty informative and a few articles underline your point, such as https://sourceable.net/nsw-gets-four-times-more-funding-than-vic-for-infrastructure/#

 

I suppose to gain insight into the market we would have to ask the question in terms of business sectors, not so much engineering disciplines, i.e:

- Construction sector (don't know where it's at really)

- Manufacturing (tough)

- Resources (even worse)

 

Different engineering disciplines are after all used by vastly different markets.

[Sunnyskies]

Hopefully the federal budget will give infrastructure building a boost.  Opportunity wise Victoria and New South Wales are your better bets.

[LeonH]

Great info @ottg, thanks for your effort!

[cutecutter]

LinkedIn plays a huge role in finding work and I guess you probably know that.. My partner is also a civil engineer (structures) and got 3 offers internationally on LinkedIn, but we were set on Aus so he actually left his old job to go work at an International company here in SA and after only 6 months there he asked if there are open positions in Aus and that's basically how he got a job before leaving. You can always google companies there and go onto their website and see if they have any Job openings. Good luck to your husband!

Edited May 6, 2016 by cutecutter

[JackoFam]

Thanks @cutecutter Yes my husband is aware how important linkedIn is - he has polished and polished..... Hopefully it bears fruit soon