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130 jobs crossing the Tasman: what the Woolworths NZ call centre plan says about where work is going

News · 2026-09-02 · 4 min read

When people in the UK think about moving to the other side of the world for work, they usually picture themselves doing the moving. Every so often a story comes along where it is the job that packs its bags instead. The plan at Woolworths New Zealand is one of them.

What has been proposed

The supermarket chain has started consultation on closing its Customer Care Centre and moving roughly 130 roles from New Zealand to Australia. Staff were told on September 1 and were given until September 15 to respond before a final decision. Until then it remains a proposal, and the scale of the closure could still change after feedback.

The money involved

Workers First Union, which represents the staff affected, puts the expected gain for the company at around NZ$4.1 million in extra earnings by FY2029. The union sets that against the company's wider figures:

• NZ$163 million in earnings before interest and tax for the year to June 2026
• an increase of 8.8% on the previous year
• more than NZ$400 million spent on rebranding its stores

In other words, the saving is small next to the size of the business, which is part of why the move has drawn attention.

Who sits behind the headcount

The union says a large share of the team are sole parents working from home. Remote customer service jobs are often chosen because they fit around childcare and school runs. Losing one is not just a matter of finding another job; it can mean rearranging how a whole household runs. Offering redeployment sounds reasonable on paper, but for someone tied to a fixed shift pattern and the school gate, it may not be workable.

The local job market adds to the pressure. New Zealand's unemployment rate stands at 5.6%, so people who lose these roles are not walking into a market crying out for staff.

Why the direction of travel is unusual

For decades, workers have crossed from New Zealand to Australia in search of better pay and more openings. That has always been a personal decision. Here, the role moves country regardless of what the worker wants. It is a quieter form of labour migration driven by the employer: the opportunity relocates, and the person is left to choose between following it, retraining or stepping away from work.

Combining support teams in one place is nothing new. What stands out in this case is that the work is leaving the country where the customers live. The union has also raised concerns about service: customers in New Zealand could end up speaking to agents in Australia who lack the local knowledge that home-based New Zealand staff bring.

What UK job hunters can take from it

If you are in customer service or another office role in the UK and thinking about the move, this is a useful reminder about how mobile some work has become. A few things to bear in mind:

1. Support and contact-centre roles can be consolidated or moved with relatively little notice, so they make a less steady base for a long-term plan abroad.
2. Australia and New Zealand are one job market in some employers' eyes. A role advertised in one may end up being based in the other.
3. Skills tied to a place, a licence or hands-on work are harder to relocate, which is why trades, healthcare and engineering tend to feature in sponsored roles.

Labour mobility now runs both ways: companies moving roles, and people moving in response. If you are weighing which side of the Tasman suits you, Employment New Zealand explains workers' rights there, and our jobs page lists current openings in both countries.

#customer service #new zealand #australia #offshoring #remote work #job market