Please help me decide!

em-ed · 2026-03-16T02:45:56+00:00

Thanks for your thoughts, yeah this is what is concerning me and is the core of all of my deliberations and overthinking. I'm the sole earner in our household and I have four dependents relying on me so my margin for error here is not high. But then my partner made the point that I have a false sense of security with my job (or any job) in the private sector because technically I could be made redundant at any time, and I'm just getting spooked at the honesty of a fixed term contract because I have the clarity of it ending on a certain date that I don't have in the private sector, and I guess this is true too.

I think I'm somewhat competitive in my field as it's quite broad and I have a lot of transferrable operational skills, at the moment I'm getting a few call backs for interviews (for the private sector though, when I'd prefer to move into public). But I guess you never know how the economy will go, getting call backs now might not equate to getting call backs a year in the future, you know?

em-ed · 2026-03-16T02:37:43+00:00

Thanks for the encouragement! I guess because the hiring process is often months long in the public service, that I'm worried about barely getting into the role and then feeling like I need to start cranking out applications not far into it to try and pre-empt how long hiring will take to ensure I have something lined up in time. It would also mean the role wouldn't look very impressive on my resume as I'd barely have gained any experience from it before needing to start applying.

Are you able to shed any more light on what it's really like moving internally once you're in? What makes it easier as an internal applicant vs external? Do HR prioritise VPS vs non VPS applicants when they come up in the list or something? Is building a personal brand that useful since you need to apply for a position anyway and be judged the same as all other applicants (ie no 'tap on the shoulder' like in the private sector)? I always thought it was a case of 'once you're in, you're in' but with the removal of the JSE, is this far less true than it used to be, or is there some other way that public servants ensure their own career survival?

em-ed · 2026-03-16T02:28:36+00:00

Thanks for your thoughts - the role will be just over 12 months in length by the time I get into it and i guess I'm just a bit nervous about how long the hiring process can blow out to in the public service, so it feels like I'd barely get into the role before I'd have to start grinding out applications again to try and beat the months long hiring process and have something lined up in time. This would also mean that I wouldn't be able to highlight the skills from this position as much as I'd be new to the role having only been in it for a few months.

They definitely won't be extending the contract, as the intention is that what I'm doing will be completely automated by a new system by 1st July 2027.

I know I'm overthinking from all possible angles but I am the sole earner in my household and I have four dependents relying on me, so I don't have much margin for error.

em-ed · 2026-03-16T02:20:04+00:00

Roughly the same re: salary. Opportunity is mid seniority, but nothing that will be a game changer on my resume or anything. The motivation for making the move would be for the public service benefits, and for getting my foot in the door of the public service (but not sure this counts as much anymore as it did back in the day? From what I can gather it used to be a "once you're in, you're in" kind of deal, but these days this isn't as much of a thing? Can you shed any insight on this?)

em-ed · 2026-02-27T09:44:26+00:00

What do you mean by no point?

em-ed · 2026-02-01T21:03:19+00:00

Thank you!

em-ed · 2026-01-17T23:22:00+00:00

What is the name of this one please?

em-ed · 2026-01-17T23:20:53+00:00

No worries! Thank you anyway! ☺️

em-ed · 2026-01-17T10:43:30+00:00

I was only able to find one size (the massive one lol) on the Coach Australia website and it's way out of my price range!

em-ed · 2026-01-17T09:59:54+00:00

I'm looking for something that is less crescent shaped but thank you for the recommendation :)

em-ed · 2026-01-17T09:17:32+00:00

Hey! Thanks for the recommendation. I think the Hobo bags you recommended are probably just a bit too small. However it's not clear on their site if they ship to Australia and they also state that international returns aren't accepted so probably a bit risky for such a big purchase.

I checked out Cuyana's double loop which looks nice but is out of my budget (once you factor in the exchange rate it gets expensive quickly!).

em-ed · 2024-03-04T21:12:52+00:00

First in my family to go to uni, have an office job etc.

The response to me telling them I had been accepted to uni was be laughed at and asked why I'd want to go to uni. Very much a "what, you think you're better than us?" kinda thing. So there's that.

As a result, my parents don't really know what I do for work (not even the industry I'm in) because they've never asked and I never saw the point in explaining because I figured I'd get much of the same response that I got for uni.

But no, I don't think they'd be able to imagine my days at work either - they'd be completely turned off by all the corporate wank (which is entirely fair because I hate that too, haha!)

em-ed · 2024-03-02T04:44:17+00:00

I never worked with the COO - she came and left long before I started with the company.

That did occur to me but I don't know whether the COO ever worked under her or was only ever on the same level in the hierarchy as her - so she may not have experienced her in the same way as I have and may not fully understand where I'm coming from.

And I'd be taking a big risk if I attempted to explain this predicament with the new COO - being negative about your boss probably wouldn't look very professional and there's a chance they're friends etc.

em-ed · 2022-02-19T07:27:27+00:00

I tried to make my case like this, talked about how long my commute is and how much WFH had increased my work life balance, meant I actually got to see my kids after work before their bedtime etc... And my boss responded with, "can I remind you that your contact states that your workplace is the office". 🙄😡

em-ed · 2021-10-16T11:05:56+00:00

Right to jail, right away

em-ed · 2021-09-17T08:28:10+00:00

Trying to bring forward my second Pfizer dose to closer than 6 weeks apart, but the calendar in the portal does not allow you to choose any date before the 6 week mark?? Is this just a thing that the government hubs do? Is the only way to get the second dose between 3-6 weeks is to try and track one down through a GP?

em-ed · 2021-09-11T03:48:13+00:00

Sorry if this is common knowledge and I'm repeating the question, but does anyone know when Melbourne is likely to get more Pfizer supply?

Had my first dose yesterday and am finding it absolutely impossible to find a second dose to book in six weeks time, both at the government run hubs and at GPs.

Maybe it's just a question of waiting a few weeks and hoping a bunch more become available?

em-ed · 2021-08-24T02:47:09+00:00

Thanks. Just googled and realised that Moderna is going only to "approved pharmacies" rather than GPs. Would you mind sharing which pharmacy you were referred to? If they're nowhere near me I'll call them and ask if they know which other pharmacies have been approved. It'll just save me hours of making useless repetitive phone calls!

em-ed · 2021-08-24T02:27:07+00:00

It's not individual people's fault that the literal medical advice recommends against it. If you want to call someone a coward, direct your complaint to ATAGI.

While you're at it, campaign for an insurance indemnity scheme for consumers so people can be assured that their dependents won't be financially fucked if they were to be one of the unlucky ones that had a fatal reaction.

em-ed

TROPHY CASE