Smoking, Socialization At Work: The New Zealand Culture Immigrants Need To Know About

The culture of a country is very important especially for those who are planning on moving there and living there. Culture is embedded in the daily life of people in a country or an area and so to be armed with information about that would be a very helpful thing especially for those who are planning on becoming immigrants. In the case of New Zealand, the culture here is really not that different as compared to other Western countries. But there are still some things that one may need to be familiar with so as to be able to cope with living in this country.

Two of the things that immigrants need to know about life and culture in New Zealand that are quite important are smoking and socialization at work. These are very important topics and should be learned by immigrants, especially those who may have a habit of smoking and those who are in the country for work.

Smoking

While in other countries smoking is very much a common sight, smoking in New Zealand is quite rare. It is also not allowed in public buildings and these include restaurants and bars. So individuals who wish to have a smoke should do it outdoors. However, it is expected that a person who may want to smoke should ask other people around them if they mind. This is the polite thing to do and is known as common courtesy.

New Zealand has been working on making the quality of life better for everyone in the country so it has been supportive of programs that help people quit smoking.

Socialization at work

In the workplace, having morning tea or afternoon tea with colleagues is common. This is oftentimes done to celebrate a person’s birthday or some milestone achieved by a team in the office. If there is a celebration for the entire team, it is common for people to bring food which they would share with everybody else. The term in New Zealand for this is “bringing a plate”, which means bringing food to share.

After the end of the week, which falls on Friday, drinks shared between friends or colleagues is a common thing in the country as well. Most of the time, drinks happen with colleagues. Sometimes, it is okay to bring a family member of a special someone or a friend with the group but it is always best to ask first if it is okay to do that. It is also important to understand that when drinks are shared, shop talk is often kept to a minimum. It is a way of relaxing and the start of enjoying the weekend so topics about work are something that people necessarily do not talk about.

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Tell us your plans to move to NZ and let our team here at Global Visa Support help you do that at the soonest time possible: http://www.globalvisasupport.com/contacts.html.