Australians needed for $5k a week job and all training is included – so what’s the catch?

An Australian solar panel company is offering up to $5,000 a week in a bid to find staff for a sales consultant role as skills shortages grip the nation, but many have been quick to point out the job comes with a catch.

The job ad, posted on Seek earlier this week, says sales consultants can earn between $3,500 and $5,000 per week selling solar panels.

However, after the ad went viral, many pointed out that the role is commission only, even though all training was provided.

‘This role is commission only, you must be able to back yourself and your sales ability,’ the ad says.

Commission-only jobs are those that pay employees based on individual performance, rather than paying a set hourly rate or annual salary. 

They are usually high pressure as there is no guarantee of a weekly income, so anyone who applies will need to be a strong salesperson. 

Some Australians pointed out that there’s big money to be made in the solar panel industry

Despite the role being commission only, some Aussies said there’s big money to be made in the solar panel industry.

‘I’ve worked for their competitors and also know people who work for them now. $150k is not hard to earn in solar,’ one Reddit user wrote.

‘I used to live with a lady who did that for a job, and she was loaded! She made a killing on commission.’ 

Covid border closures have slashed the number of visa holders in Australia. The result is a huge shortage of workers suffered by businesses around nation.

Job vacancies are now are record highs with 396,100 positions available in November, the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed on Wednesday.

During the past year, advertised employment numbers have surged by 56.1 per cent or by 142,400, making it even harder for employers to recruit staff.

Intriguingly, the number of job ads in November 2021 was 74.2 per cent higher than in February 2020, just before the pandemic.

Some businesses are so desperate they are offering prizes and special bonuses to attract staff. 

Hospitality group Solotel – which owns 24 venues including Sydney’s Aria restaurant, run by celebrity chef Matt Moran, said about 20 per cent of trade had been lost due to staff shortages.

Many businesses are struggling to find workers after Covid border closures, resulting in higher wages for new staff

Mr Moran told Daily Mail Australia the issue was the lack of workers.

‘It’s not just a matter of finding staff… it’s just that there aren’t any people to find.

‘We are at the point now where we are offering incentives to existing staff members who bring in other people willing to work.

‘But it’s so bad. It is the worst conditions I have ever seen in my whole career. And until we get the visa holders back in the country it won’t improve.’

Sydney’s exclusive Rockpool Bar & Grill offered dishwashing staff as much as $90 an hour for weekend nights, but still struggled to get workers in the door.

The owner of Bondi’s Pompei pizza restaurant George Pompei said last month his $2,000 signing bonus was being turned down by applicants preferring to stay on JobSeeker.

The Apollo in Potts Point is seeking a floor manager and offering a cash bonus to the successful applicant.

Meanwhile, hospitality companies The Dog’s Group and Australian Venue Co. are offering up to $3,500 as sign-on bonuses.

It’s not just the hospitality industry facing a shortage of workers.

Thousands of unskilled jobs paying up to $120,000 a year are about to become available in the mining industry. 

The re-opening of the Western Australian border on February 5 is expected to create a new boom for entry-level mining jobs for double vaccinated people, especially in hard rock underground and iron ore mining.

Jobs in iron ore and gold mining are being driven by high prices and surging production.

Salaries for mining sector graduates in WA jumped up to 27 per cent in 2021, but now it seems even unskilled workers can earn six figures from the latest mining boom.

Andrew Knight, a trainer with Underground Training, predicts there will be new roles available across 120 WA sites mining everything from gold, zinc, nickel, copper, uranium and lead.

Demand for these minerals is driven by export for components into phones, batteries and computers.

New starters such as truck drivers and unskilled ‘nippers’ or ‘gofers’ (who drive people across a mine site) commonly earn between $350 and $550 a day.

‘An experienced nipper around Kalgoorlie can make up to $550 a day,’ Mr Knight said.

That adds up to between $95,000 and $120,000 a year before tax.

For those interested in mining careers, it doesn’t take long to move into highly-paid roles, well beyond most jobs.

After around six to 12 months, many people graduate into ‘service crew’ roles earning up to $650 a day, which equates to a salary of $154,700.

Mr Knight estimated around a quarter of crews are women.

Andrew Knight, a trainer with Underground Training, predicts there will be new roles in available across 120 WA sites mining everything from gold, zinc, nickel, copper, uranium and lead

He said people new to mining will start in a driver or gofer role for at least six months to a year, usually working two weeks straight before having a week off.

Mr Knight points out that 12 hour shifts and working 14 days straight are ‘industry standard’ – which can come as a shock to people who ‘go in green’.

‘The failure rate is around three out of five people if they aren’t trained before they start.’

‘If they turn up without training to a mine site it’s sink or swim. A lot of people sink.’

Mr Andrews says the toughest thing for newbies – aside from the long hours and physically-demanding work – is the pressure.

‘For a lot of people it’ll be the most time-oriented job they’ll ever have.

‘The mining industry measures downtime in tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars per hour,’ he said.