The majority of Australian finance workers would recommend a career here to overseas peers despite the high cost of living, according to the recent eFinancialCareers Annual Movement Survey.
The high cost of living was nominated as the worst thing about living here by two in five respondents, but overall, 84 per cent recommended Australia as a destination for a career in finance. Four-fifths identified Sydney as having the most potential.
One-fifth of respondents also nominated Australia's high tax regime as a comparatively negative issue, according to the 472 bankers and other finance workers surveyed in July this year.
"Whilst Australia is increasingly seen as a career destination for finance, it is also seen as an increasingly expensive place to live, and this is impacting on firms' abilities to attract overseas candidates," eFinancialCareers managing director Asia-Pacific George McFerran said.
Although the living away from home allowance also disappears at the end of September, 69 per cent of those surveyed did not think its removal would affect the flow of international talent into Australia.
"Lifestyle choices often override remuneration and financial benefits, and Australia is still very much perceived as offering an enviable lifestyle. Recruiters should start to focus on selling-in these lifestyle benefits when trying to secure talent from abroad," McFerran said.
