Moving from the leafy Melbourne suburb of Kew to live in the Latrobe Valley town of Moe is hardly a well-worn path.
Key points:
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The Regional Australia Institute has launched a recruitment drive to encourage city workers to consider moving to the regions
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Jobseekers are encouraged to negotiate higher salaries and flexible working conditions
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Regional Australia’s population has grown by 70,000 since the pandemic
Sophie Brunton made that move in 2021 in search of a job and does not regret a thing.
The 23-year-old studied Conservation and Land Management at RMIT and was becoming fed up with the sometimes hour-long commute to the city campus.
By the time she graduated, Ms Brunton also struggled to find a career that motivated her.
That is when she decided to seek an “adventure” and leave the city for regional Victoria, scoring a job as an outdoor education facilitator.
She is part of a growing trend of Australians moving to the country in search of a better way of life.
Temptation of regional life
The Regional Australia Institute (RAI) has found half of metropolitan workers could be persuaded to take a job in the regions as cost-of-living pressures bite.
There were 91,000 vacant internet-advertised jobs in regional Australia in May.
RAI external affairs director Laureta Wallace said this was the perfect time for employees to push for incentives such as a higher salary, flexible working conditions and even a four-day working week.
“I know some local governments trying to attract doctors … will even pay for your kids’ education. Negotiate to get a package that ticks your boxes,” Ms Wallace said.
Regions affordable, connected to city
For Ms Brunton, connecting with the Moe community has been an important part of her move to regional Victoria and she enjoys attending a large number of local events.
“I’m really keen to just keep exploring,” she said.
“It’s really lovely to walk down the street and say hello to anyone and just have a conversation. Knowing familiar faces, knowing people by name.
“The other wonderful thing is the scenery. It’s just so gorgeous and green out here.”
Moe’s proximity to Melbourne means Ms Brunton is able to easily return to the city on weekends.
“I just hop on the train. To get into the city it takes a bit over an hour,” she said.
When it comes to the cost of living, Ms Brunton said her country lifestyle was far more affordable than it would be if she lived in Melbourne.
“I live by myself in a little house in Moe. It’s a small house, but it’s really nice. It’s affordable for me,” she said.
Regional recruitment drive
The RAI has launched a campaign to educate city-based workers about the career opportunities that exist outside the nation’s largest central business districts.
It says it is the nation’s biggest recruitment drive, designed to showcase the 91,000 jobs on offer in regional Australia via a dedicated website.
Ms Wallace said there was not an industry or a sector across regional Australia that was not being affected by current job shortages.
The RAI said Australia was in the midst of “a great skills shortage”, largely driven by the pandemic.
“The shutting of our borders during COVID meant less migrants coming to the regions to work,” Ms Wallace said.
“Also, that mass exodus from the capital cities saw regional Australia’s population grow by 70,000.”
Finding schools for kids key
Prestige Staffing is a recruitment agency that connects businesses and employees in Mildura in Victoria’s north-west.
Managing director Grant Beggs said for people moving from the city to fill regional vacancies, getting their children a quality education was a priority.
“If they have got school-aged kids, to get into the right schools [and] to be in the right zones is a big issue,” he said.
“But then another aspect is what happens when they get to year 12 and finish, then they are going to have to move back to Melbourne or Adelaide to possibly further their education, if that’s their desire.
“So that’s always a factor as well — they come in and their kids have got to go away again.”
However, Mr Beggs said the drawcards of regional living often sealed the deal.
“[It’s] to give their kids an opportunity to enjoy life, [to] go to school and be home within 5 or 10 minutes and have that more laid-back lifestyle,” he said.
Construction-led jobs growth
Paul Stein, who owns a plumbing business along the NSW-Victoria border, said there was still a widespread workforce shortage in many trades.
“At the moment, there’s a shortage of workers and a backlog of work from COVID times,” he said.
“If there were some incentives for the city folk to come out, that would make it easier.”
But it is a double-edged sword because as more people relocate to regional areas, extra pressure is placed on the building industry and tradespeople.
“A lot of people moving out of the cities to the regional areas has put extra pressure on councils and governments and tradies,” Mr Stein said.
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