A French backpacker who claimed to have saved $15,000 in just three months while working on a farm has upset some Australians by questioning how the country can have poor people.
The man claimed he earns more while working 50-hour weeks at minimum wage, operating a cherry picker to harvest fruit and ‘cutting down some trees’ on a Western Australian farm, than working as a professional salesman with a postgraduate degree in Europe. . .
‘So that’s my question, how can you be poor in Australia?’ he told her in a video posted on Tik Tok.
The French national is one of 112,335 people holding working holiday visas in Australia as of December 31, 2022.
Many of them choose to do farm work, as it can extend their stay up to 12 months and open the door to an even longer visa in the future.
Having saved a considerable amount of money in a short time, he wondered ‘how is it possible’ that someone can be poor in Australia.
‘They pay me the minimum rate of what they can pay you here in Australia’
The minimum wage in Australia is $21.38 per hour with 25 per cent charging $26.73 per hour for casual work.
“I do maybe 50 hours a week… I try to make a lot of money,” he continued.
‘And in three months I have maybe $15,000 in my savings.’
The backpacker then claims he makes more money with a ‘shit job on a farm using a cherry picker and I cut down some trees’ than he did when he worked in France with a master’s degree.
In the comments section, explain what you have to pay.
“I pay the rent, I pay electricity and gas, I have a car,” he wrote.
‘The fact is that I don’t spend my money on beers, cigarettes.’
In a video posted to TikTok, a French backpacker (pictured) questioned how there can be poor Australians after saving $15,000 in just three months of farm work in Western Australia.
The French said he has a ‘shitty job’ operating a fruit picker and cutting down trees for 50 hours a week at minimum wage, but still earns money.
The video sparked strong reactions online with some Australians praising the man for his work ethic, while others thought he was ‘out of touch’.
“Well done hope you make a lot of money we need hard working people here,” wrote one user.
‘As an Australian who doesn’t do my best, this was a good kick in the ass. I really appreciate hearing this,” he wrote a second.
“Nice job bro show Australia how it’s done,” wrote a third.
But others were quick to point out the vast difference between living and working on a farm and doing the same in a city.
“Come to Sydney these (savings) will last a couple of weeks,” wrote one user.
“When you make $960 a week, rent $540, gas $80, food $200, electricity, etc. It’s not easy,” wrote a second.
‘When you’re paying rent/full bills, you can see why, mate. Good on you for working hard but living on a farm is pretty cheap I’d say,” wrote a third.
Australia’s unemployment rate for January was 3.7 percent, up slightly from December’s 48-year low of 3.5 percent.
The unemployment count of 523,200 was almost half the July 2020 level of 1.015 million during the first few months of the pandemic after the initial shutdowns.
Meet the 23-year-old Australian who traded the city for a life of ‘nomadic’ fruit picking in the countryside, but still earns $500 a DAY
A young Australian woman has revealed she earns up to $480 a day fruit picking in regional Australia after trading her city life for the countryside.
Kirasie Tate, from Sydney, moved to Orange to work with her father, who is a full-time professional fruit picker.
The 23-year-old is originally from Lismore, New South Wales, but moved to Sydney five years ago before deciding to return to her roots.
“I have traveled to beautiful regional towns along the East Coast that I would normally never go to,” he told FEMAIL.
“While it’s definitely not a glamorous job, you work long hours and camp with shared facilities, there are advantages.”
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Kirasie Tate (pictured), from Sydney, recently moved to Orange to work with her father, who is a full-time professional fruit picker.
A young Australian woman has just revealed that she earns up to $480 a day while picking fruit in the Australian region.
Tate has also been to places like Gayndah in the Queensland countryside and Huonville and Richmond in Tasmania for his work.
The 23-year-old told FEMAIL that the fruit-picking process is laborious: workers have to use scissors to carefully cut a fruit from its stem and then stuff it into their bags that fill the boxes.
Fruit pickers must also take extra care not to bruise or damage the fruit in the process.
Tate (pictured) has also been to places like Gayndah in the Queensland country and Huonville and Richmond in Tasmania for his work.
Tate especially likes the “beautiful” sunrises and sunsets he sees as part of his job, along with the added benefits of interacting with farm animals like horses and cows.
But the part-time fruit picker revealed that certain parts of the job aren’t ideal, citing a case in which she woke up with a green tree frog attached to her cheek.
“Rain is particularly bad as it means you can’t work and just have to take a day off.”
The tangerine season, which runs from April to June, was interrupted by torrential rains.
“All the fruit falls to the ground,” he said.
Tate especially likes the “beautiful” sunrises and sunsets he sees as part of his job, along with the added benefits of interacting with farm animals like horses and cows.
Many have expressed a desire to experience the nature-oriented life of Tate.
“You’re living the dream. I wish I could do this and get away from the city,” said one man.
“My mum had great experiences picking fruit when she was 20, I hope to one day too,” said another.