Any families doing FIFO?

[bowow2011]

Hiya Bowow,
That's great that your life is suiting you both at the mo. My oh is hoping to be able to work 2 on 1 off but sure we'll see eh! I'm used to him being away as he used to be a long distance lorry driver but I'm just not used to bein away from home! Did u find work yourself ok, are ye out there long? I'm a intellectual disability nurse, developmental disabilitynursr out there, oh is flat out researching jobs for me, he's better on pc than me!! I'm sure I'll hav lots of questions for you as time goes on!!
Karen xx

Hiya Karen, it is hard at first and extremely daunting I miss him so much and find myself on countdown all the time but with the money comes the lifestyle, holidays ect :0) but I found at first there was nobody and felt like I had landed in the middle of nowhere and hated it but I just got our there and went with the flow. we originally lived there for a year a few years ago and luckily stayed in touch with friends we've made but I'm sure you'll have no problem settling in, no I'm not working in nursing yet :0( I went on my oh skills for the visa hes an electrician so I need to register with nursing boatd ect which is taking forever. Are you already in Oz? If not have you looked for sponsorship? That's probably the easiest way with nursing u think but not 100% We love Perth and plenty to do for the little ones :0) xxxx

[Hano]

Hiya Karen, it is hard at first and extremely daunting I miss him so much and find myself on countdown all the time but with the money comes the lifestyle, holidays ect :0) but I found at first there was nobody and felt like I had landed in the middle of nowhere and hated it but I just got our there and went with the flow. we originally lived there for a year a few years ago and luckily stayed in touch with friends we've made but I'm sure you'll have no problem settling in, no I'm not working in nursing yet :0( I went on my oh skills for the visa hes an electrician so I need to register with nursing boatd ect which is taking forever. Are you already in Oz? If not have you looked for sponsorship? That's probably the easiest way with nursing u think but not 100% We love Perth and plenty to do for the little ones :0) xxxx

No not there yet. We're applying for 176ss visa also. We're hoping to be Perth bound early next March if all goes according to plan. I'm just about to apply to APHRA for reg, seems to be taking a while to get registered. Yes I'm sure once we get there i'll be fine and hopefully love it. I've made a good few friends on here already & it helps to kno you've people to meet up with when we get over there.... From all the research we've done Perth seems lovely, very family orientated which is what we are looking for. And lifestyle has to be better there than what we have here at mo as money is unbelievably tight for us, work practically non existent for oh!
Karen x x

[ezme]

We are a FIFO family doing a 2/1. I have 2 in school and 1 at home. I find that with schooling and after school activities I am too busy to be too lonely. I also hit the gym most mornings and that gives me a kid free break for the day. You will also meet lots of familes through school, etc. It does take a while to meet those special friends. I can find the weekends the hardest as I know that most people have their OH at home. And having no family is tough but it is the life that we chose.

For me, the hardest part was the idea of FIFO. I was dreading being by myself and was full of self-doubt on my abilties to cope with the children. The reality has been so much better. I am stronger than I thought.

Good luck for the future.

[lornarees]

Hiya , my name is Lorna hubby is Jamie and I've got 2 boys aged 2 and 6 , my hubby is FIFO on a8 on 6 off rota id luv to meet up with Otha families as I'll be on my own a lot with 2 kids

Hope to hear from u soon
lorna x

[fourcorners]

The mining industry is completely different from the oil and gas industry so you can't really compare wage differences in one part of the world in one industry with those in another industry in another part of the world. I work in mining and know plenty of people doing FIFO work, although most are either single or child-less couples. I have worked FIFO myself in Canada and didn't like it, as when I came home my OH was working and we only had weekends together, and I struggled to make friends as I was away so much. Then in the UK my OH did FIFO to Australia on a 6/3 roster. Very hard for him with the long journeys and jet-lag, and again I was working so we didn't get a huge amount of time together.
But, having said all of that, I think if you are a stay-at-home mum then you will get more quality time together when your OH is on his days off, and can go and explore the area and feel like you're having a holiday every few weeks. The money is good, better than a residential job, but the FIFO lifestyle does get very tiring after a while. We put up with it for 3 years and don't want to do it ever again! We now live in Kalgoorlie where we both work residentially at local mine sites. Meaning we spend every evening and weekend together and often both get an extra day or two off each month. The money is not much less than FIFO but its more than made up for by the fact that we feel we have a life together. And when we decide to start a family it will be much easier to cope with OH there for support. Yes its not Perth and its not near a beach, but there is a great community spirit here and its very easy to make friends. So if you're having serious doubts about a FIFO lifestyle, maybe consider a residential job instead?

[lornarees]

I find FIFO ok tbh but I have children so they keep me busy , I'm always happy to meet up with people even If they avnt got children

Give me a bell if u want to meet for a coffee and a chat x

Lorna

[lozenger1967]

I find FIFO ok tbh but I have children so they keep me busy , I'm always happy to meet up with people even If they avnt got children

Give me a bell if u want to meet for a coffee and a chat x

Lorna

what does your other half do lorna, if you dont mind me asking?

[lornarees]

He is a electrical engineer in a nickel mine called Minara
im a stay at home mum as he 8-6

[spud-u-like]

I'm currently in the final stages of my 457, just awaiting medical clearance, I'm going to be working in the Pilbara region at a all inclusive mine site (accom/food/transport free), 60 days on/30 off and then commute back to the UK or my wife can fly to Oz. I do this rotation for a year and then go onto a normal 8/6 rotation.
I think I'm fairly luck, I get to totally immerse myself in my new job without the worry my wife is somewhere all alone and fed up, once my first year is up we'll both have a better idea if this is the life for us as well as, hopefully, found some location to live that suits us both. If not for us my new company will repatriate me back to the UK, having spent next to nothing....if on the other hand all is good they'll fly my wife to Oz (and all our belongings) as well as provide a great cash disturbance allowance to start us off! Yeah I know a great scheme, I've been incredibly lucky and with the added bonus if it all goes pear shaped I have a route out back to the UK.

I currently work in the Sinai desert and have 40 days leave a year, my wife and I have gotten used to the idea and extra tax free cash....yes its lonely (this year we've been apart over both xmas/new year) but when I do go home its like when we first met!! If you can get over the separation/loneliness and just set yourself some goals (pay the mortgage off, big holiday, new car) and take everything in small steps you'll be fine.

[lornarees]

i agree , in the uk i worked evenings and my hubby worked days and most weekends so we only saw each other maybe 2 nights a week , even tho he is away for 8 days when he's home it is all family time then , I've not found it to be tho yet as I'm busy with kids in the days n then keep in contact with family in the evenings the only thing i avnt got here is my friends and family but on ce we join all the activities like swimming karate and gymnastics we will be fine

we come on a 457 visa so all relocation costs were paid so we were lucky the bad thing is if we don't like it and want to go home we have to pay it all back but so far i wouldn't go home !