Living in Australia on a WHV During Coronavirus

Living in Australia just got really weird. Grocery stores are sold out of essential items like toilet paper and pasta. Popular, well-rated restaurants have closed down or only offer takeaway. And, high-rise office buildings in the central business district are empty. All of this is from the international pandemic of COVID-19, the coronavirus.

This is a difficult time to travel Australia, whether on a Working Holiday Visa, or just a vacation. Living in Australia for over a year now, I’m sharing a different perspective of this situation. I live and work in Australia full-time in agriculture, which guarantees a job mores than other sectors. But, that doesn’t mean everything is easy or simple.

I don’t have the simplicity to return home to Canada when things get difficult here. Yet, I have to balance my own safety and well-being with those around me.

Pre-pandemic times

When the coronavirus talk first began in January, most people living and travelling in Australia were still too concerned about the bush fires. Another strain of a virus wasn’t as important as rebuilding homes and bringing tourism back to businesses.

A few weeks ago I was grocery shopping at ALDI—known for always having an obnoxious amount of product stock. Nearly leaving the store, my partner pointed out the huge empty shelf where the toilet paper normally sits. It was completely empty. He explained people are panick-buying supplies for a possible shut-down, due to the coronavirus. This was when the limits on buying ‘essential items’ began.

I thought this was hilarious. Did people really think the world was about to end? Yes, people in China were dying from the virus, but it was mainly elderly people, or other people with underlying health conditions.

However, as with any new virus strain, disease or other ailment, it’s hard to get true facts, quickly. When a new virus of any kind is created, the world works quickly to find out the facts. Such as, how contagious is it, the effects on different people, the symptoms and more. Viruses also effect everyone differently and they take years to understand. This understanding is based off of scientific evidence and thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of scientific studies.

For example, breast cancer, one of the most common types of cancer is still being researched and more is being understood every day. For example, since breast cancer was first discovered, scientists and other medical professionals now understand there’s different types of breast cancers, some are even specific to human genes.

There’s no way that coronavirus can be understood, to the extended it needs to be, right away.

Coronavirus is taking over the world

Coronavirus isn’t the first new ailment to shock the world, but it is the first in my life time make an impact this significant. In many ways it’s another bush fire scare, this time though, there’s no fire and it could be inside of you, already.

Especially in the beginning of this pandemic, many people have been criticizing the media for its impact on spreading news. This is frustrating because the media’s job has always been to deliver news as though it’s life-changing. When a big event such as the current coronavirus occurs, of course there’s more news on the subject, but I believe the government has made a bigger impact than the media.

Yes, media delivers news, but it’s up to people to listen and share interest in its topics. The government is the difference between talk and law making, which ultimately makes the biggest impact.

This week has been a turning point for the world, from the coronavirus. Australia’s Prime Minister, Scott Morrison closed the country’s borders to non-citizens. This comes after many other countries have done the same.

Countries are doing this in hopes of self-containing the disease in their own country to get a hold on it. Many are relying on citizens to self-isolate whether they’re infected or not.

Self-isolating is a great practise, especially for those that are sick. But, something missed in the conversation of self-isolation is those with low income already. For many people it’s not possible to work from home, so for those living pay-cheque to pay-cheque, self-isolation is impossible. And, help from the government won’t be fast to make up for time off work.

The Working Holiday Visa rut

In Australia and around the world the impact on job loss has been severe. Tourism, retail, most customer service jobs and more have just disappeared. This is a big struggle for those that are self-employed. The world has almost come to a standstill, focusing all remaining funds towards the health care sector and surviving through this crisis.

In Australia, there’s still plenty of Working Holiday Visa Holders in the country. And becoming infected with coronavirus aside, those on Working Holiday Visas are in a tight spot. Many are without work and panicking to find any kind of job. In many respects, this is a best case scenario.

Others are at the end of their visa and risking to become illegal in Australia. This is because closing borders includes travel through an airport. Meaning anyone without the ability to take a direct flight to their home country, cannot return. That is, if the flight isn’t cancelled.

I’m not on either end of this spectrum, thankfully, I’m right in the middle. I have a full-time job in agriculture, which supplies the food industry. Unlike working in retail or customer service, working in agriculture defies the world market to some degree. And, the Australian government considers it an essential job, for the moment.

People will always need food, and supplying to that chain guarantees a job more than many other sectors. If anything, the cost of food could increase as it’s one of the only viable commodities the world is after at the moment.

That doesn’t mean I don’t know how it feels to be on the other side of this spectrum though. Before finding my current job I was treading unknown waters through unemployment while travelling Australia. It was a very real and hard time. But, I stuck with it and got to where I am now. Had I first arrived in Australia in February 2020 instead of 2019, there’s no doubt I would have been in an even more severe situation.

Those on Working Holiday Visas in Australia and likely other countries get left behind for a few reasons. The first is that we don’t have the same working rights as an Australian. In most areas, Working Holiday Visa makers can only work six months at a job. Even if finding a job happened at an appropriate time, we’re likely the first to lose a job, because we don’t have the same working rights.

Worse, is that many people on Working Holiday Visas are doing regional work. This is a government requirement to get a second Working Holiday Visa. But, it also means we’re often doing some of the hardest, lowest paid jobs in remote areas.

Couple these issues with the coronavirus disaster, and those on Working Holiday Visas are currently without work, funds to continue travelling and no way to return home. The coronavirus pandemic is so unique and there’s no way to tell when it will be over.

Jobs and finances aside, there’s still safety and homesickness that cause problems for people on Working Holiday Visas. Specifically with anxiety around getting home, having the funds to do so and worrying about family and friends around the world. Closed borders removes the possibility of visiting anyone in a country you don’t have citizenship though. And a modern reality is that, people have family and friends in different countries.

Relax and go with your gut

Personally, I wasn’t taking the coronavirus very seriously until my home country of Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked Canadians to return home. It wasn’t a joke anymore and I started to worry. What if this virus was more serious than I previously thought? What would happen if my family gets sick and I can’t go home to see them?

This is the panic I began to feel from the government. But after the initial panic I began to think sensibly again. The facts are still out there, preventing the disease spread and contraction is the same as a flu. Symptoms affect everyone different and can be as light as the common cold.

One reason why it doesn’t make sense for me to travel home to Canada is that I could pick up and spread the disease in transit. Another reason is that I wouldn’t have a job and I would leave my employers without a trained employee. Overall it just doesn’t make sense.

It’s not possible to tell the future extent of the coronavirus. Italy’s death toll from coronavirus has now surpassed that of China. Making it hard to depict fact from panic, especially as the world closes its borders to non-citizens.

But for the moment being it’s important to go with your gut, whatever that may be. Even with all of the uncertainties, there’s no wrong or right answer. More importantly, don’t shame other people for their decisions. I’m not currently required to be under any self-isolation. I can still freely go to work, the grocery store and anything else. I’m aware many others can’t do the same.

It’s important to realize the coronavirus can be spread regardless of self-isolation, however it is an important tool for people to utilize. A big reason it’s important not to shame others for not using self-isolation is that not everyone has the budget to stay at home and not work. Having a job right now or the ability to work from home is a privilege. This goes for both families and those on Working Holiday Visas, among others.

But, if you are stuck at home or secluded somewhere while travelling, it’s a good time to practise self-care and kindness to others. But don’t forget the necessary social distancing.

Since my first no-toilet-paper grocery store shop, I have less energy to laugh about it now. Every time I go into any grocery store, the toilet paper section has remained empty. I keep an eye on my six rolls of toilet paper left, wondering when I’ll be able to buy more.