Networking, persistence, and skills development are the key ingredients for successful jobhunting identified by Burmese refugee Mar Mar Kyi Maung.

 

Refugees have to work at understanding the New Zealand workplace culture as well as improving their English and their professional skills, Kyi Maung says.

 

But once a refugee has attained those skills, they need persistence to find a professional job. Kyi Maung, a Nelson resident since arriving in New Zealand nearly seven years ago, spent 18 months looking for a professional job once she finished her accountancy degree. “You have to keep trying and be persistent and not give up,” she says.

 

“I couldn’t just stay home and do nothing but look for a job, so I continued studying. It was kind of depressing.”

 

Networking is vital to finding a job, Kyi Maung says. In the end, it was the connections she made while studying that led to her employment. Contacts Kyi Maung made through her English as a Second Language  (ESOL) lessons led to her learning to use accounting software in the ESOL office. That gave her some of the confidence and workplace experience that are vital for migrant jobseekers.

 

But it wasn't quite enough. “I couldn’t find a job from newspapers or job adverts or online. I tried many! But I wasn’t successful. But fortunately I was studying and the tutor from my school recognised that I was trying really hard.”

 

That tutor was approached by an employer looking to hire a recent graduate, and he suggested to Kyi Maung that she apply. Kyi Maung didn’t need help from him with her application, but the fact that he encouraged her when her confidence was failing made all the difference.

 

“He said to me, ‘You’ve got many skills. You’ve got problem-solving skills. Even though you don’t have New Zealand experience, you have a good attitude.’ So I gained confidence.” Having somebody supportive is very important, she says.

 

Kyi Maung says she got the job “instantly” from her job interview.

 

Many refugees around Nelson, like Kyi Maung, enter the workforce doing seasonal work fruitpicking or at the Sealords fishery.

 

“If a refugee doesn’t have much English or an educated background back home, then they don’t expect much. They’re just happy to have a considerable amount of earnings. They don’t feel discriminated against.” She says she saw little obvious discrimination during her time working at Sealords.

 

But many refugees who have a professional background in their home country are very disappointed with the work they get in New Zealand once their English improves, she says. They can be frustrated in their attempts to find professional work. “Sometimes employers don’t even respond to an application.”

 

Kyi Maung believes work experience or apprenticeship schemes would help refugees a lot. “Sometimes you need a chance to show your skills and experience. Once you get into it you’ll be all right.”