Movers within New Zealand and from overseas had a young age structure, while people who had not moved between the March 2005 and 2007 quarters had a slightly older age structure than the resident population. Movers from overseas had a slightly younger age structure than movers within New Zealand, reflecting the high proportion of Asian ethnicities coming to study in New Zealand secondary schools and tertiary education providers.
Figure 1
The contrast between the younger age groups and the older age groups was reflected in the pivotal point at ages 40–44 years. People over 45 years were more likely to have reached a more settled stage in their lives: they may have school-aged children, have achieved a satisfactory level of work opportunities or work outcomes, and have already established homes. The younger age groups were more likely to be in the process of developing these experiences, skills, and assets prior to putting down roots.
People under 40 years of age who moved to New Zealand from overseas tended to be older than movers within New Zealand, reflecting international migration trends. A much smaller proportion of international arrivals were in the older age groups.
There were only slight differences in the age group distribution between returning New Zealanders and overseas-born. Most of returning New Zealanders were aged from 20–39 years (68 percent of those returning). This compared with 64 percent of the overseas-born moving to New Zealand aged from 20–39 years.
Table 2
Movers to New Zealand by Country of Birth
By employment status and occupation
March 2007 quarter |
| Employment status |
Occupation |
Country of birth |
All movers to New Zealand |
| New Zealand |
Overseas |
|
Percent |
| Working for pay of profit |
|
|
Legislators/administrators/ managers/professionals |
28.5 |
23.7 |
25.5 |
|
Technicians/associate professionals/clerks |
13.2 |
10.7 |
11.6 |
|
Service and sales workers/agriculture and fishery workers |
9.5 |
7.1 |
8.0 |
|
Trades workers/plant and machinery operators/labourers and elementary service workers |
9.6 |
9.0 |
9.2 |
|
All occupations |
60.8 |
50.6 |
54.3 |
| Not employed but seeking paid work |
10.5 |
8.8 |
9.4 |
| Not employed and not seeking paid work |
28.7 |
40.6 |
36.3 |
| Total stated |
100.0 |
100.0 |
100.0 |
About half of overseas-born were employed at the time of their move to New Zealand in the two years ended March 2007 quarter. This proportion compared with 60 percent of returning New Zealanders. The occupations recorded for the overseas-born reflected the skills that were attracted through the immigration policies at the time. Interestingly, the distribution of occupations for returning New Zealanders and for the overseas-born were very similar, with a third of occupations in the professionals category (included in the legislators/administrators/professionals group which accounted for nearly half of those employed moving to New Zealand).
A larger proportion of overseas-born were not employed and not seeking paid work (41 percent). This group included overseas students (who generally cannot work as part of their visa requirements), and partners not seeking paid work.