Backpackers play an enormous role in the Australian economy. I didn't know this when planning my trip, and it took some considerable time while out here for me to realise just how important we are to Australia's fortunes. Because driving the country's economic prosperity from behind the wheel of a rusty campervan is a legion of adventurous, work seeking, perpetually cash-strapped, English learning, sun-and-fun-loving, unyielding optimistic backpackers.
We come from all over the world, but the majority of us are European, with Britain, Germany, and France most strongly represented. We're mostly between 18 and 30 years of age and we come to Australia for a variety of reasons: we're here to escape our home country, we're here for a fresh start, we're here purely for fun, we're here as a gap between school and university, university and work, or work and different work, we're here with dreams of immigrating, we're here for the sun, we're here for the surf, we're here to earn money to travel elsewhere (Vietnam, Thailand, New Zealand...), we're here on a whim. Some arrive with savings, other with just enough to survive until they find a job. We are here in our masses and we are everywhere. But why are we so beneficial to Australia?
Firstly, there is the sheer number of backpackers here. In each of the big cities there are areas dominated by giant hostels sleeping hundreds. In Sydney and Melbourne, you can constantly see young people on the move carrying backpacks like a turtle its shell. But we are not just in the major cities, as you'll find out later. Secondly, as travellers we're obviously spending a lot of money. However, the key is the design of the working holiday visa, which almost all of us are here on.
The working holiday visa lasts one year and allows you to work in Australia. And what a great source of labour we are. The guys are performing all manner of labouring jobs while the girls are ensuring the towns and cities are never short of waitresses or bar staff. The beauty of having backpackers available to work is that they can fill in and as whenever needed, allowing businesses to easily adjust their supply of labour to meet the demand for their products or services. For instance, I worked five different labouring jobs in Cronulla in the space of one month. For many employers, it can be much more efficient than having to hire permanent staff. Plus, we are more than happy to work for a basic wage, not only because we need the money to stay on the road, but because the wages are so damn good here. The bottom level hourly rate for 'unskilled' jobs such as fruit picking and bar work is $15-20 - around double what you would get in Europe. A clever caveat of the visa is that you can't work for the same employer for more than six months, so it can't really be said that we're taking jobs away from Australians.
From an Australian economic standpoint, the real beauty of the working holiday visa is the opportunity to extend it for a second year. To qualify for this extension - and whoever came up with this idea is a genius - you must complete 88 days of farm work in regional Australia. This work must be completed a specified distance away from the major cities, must be for eight hours a day, and must be actual farm work rather than, for example, housework in the home of a farmer. The classic job for obtaining the second year visa is fruit picking. Backpackers are picking fruit all over the country, so even in tiny towns in the middle of nowhere there will be hostels, such as Echuca in Northern Victoria, close to where I dairy farmer. Trying to get those 88 days of farm work can be a massive challenge, with supply of backpackers far outweighing demand in many places, so the further afield you go, the better your chances. Therefore no matter where you are in Australia you run into backpackers. I'm rare in that I am only here for around six months, almost everyone does at least a year and the majority do two. It seems most travellers can't bear to leave - one girl I met went as far as faking signatures on the forms to demonstrate completion of the 88 days farm work. She got caught and her deportation was imminent.
Unfortunately, the desire (bordering on desperation) of backpackers to get that second year visa means we are open to exploitation. I've heard countless stories of travellers being told "yeah, come here, there's heaps of fruit picking work going", then they travel hours and hours to a remote town only to find there isn't actually any work available, or it is only for two days a week. One guy - who was an idiot and deserved what he got - paid money online to 'guarantee his place on the farm', then turned up at the address to discover that he had been scammed and the farm didn't even exist. For this reason I am glad I don't have the pressure of completing the farm work for the second year visa. I wouldn't mind picking fruit and I would love the money, but I can do without the stress of finding the work and I refuse to be exploited.
The farm work requirement is genius because it solves the problem of finding seasonal workers to pick fruit. Watermelons can only be picked in Tasmania for a few months per year, likewise grapes on the Margaret River vineyards. Who else would be carrying out this work if not backpackers, who conveniently have to do three months of it! Backpackers are perfect for the job as they come in, pick the fruit while it is in season, then piss off without ever putting strain on Australian social services! Best of all, most backpackers quickly spend everything they earn, and they're spending it on Australian goods and services! We're spending it on travel, food, and cheap Australian wine, we're paying $30 a night to stay in hostels, and we're splashing cash on expensive tours and 'once in a lifetime' experiences such as scuba diving.
In conclusion, the working holiday visa is a great system for all involved. Australia gets its economy boosted and its fruit picked, while we get to work for good money and enjoy all the amazing things this country has to offer.
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