For
many mining and resources workers, the decision between permanent
versus fly-in/ fly-out employment boils down to lifestyle choice. These
days, workers are no longer required to live on-site in local mining
districts in outback Queensland; there are now other opportunities. Thorley
& Associates (Director) Neil Thorley said mining contractors had
identified this change in lifestyle and were now recruiting suitable
people to fly-in from other areas to get the job done.
The
fly-in/ fly-out employee, as they are often referred to in the
industry, generally lives in major cities across Australia and travels
out to specific contracting jobs when hired.
Mr
Thorley said this lifestyle choice allowed the miners' to continue
their careers and for their children to attend a particular school. "The mining lifestyle doesn't necessarily have to affect the whole family now," he said. "Everyone's expectations have changed. Miners are now taking their partners and families needs into consideration as well as their own. Opening
the fly-in/ fly-out employment door as another option for miners means
that they can now remain in the industry but live the life they choose
in the city." And the trend is expected to
continue, Mr Thorley said he predicted more members of the labour
workforce would opt for fly-in/ fly-out employment in the future. "I recommend both contractors and mining operators consider this as an option," he said. "If
both parties make these allowances, everyone can win - contractors can
get the right person for the job and workers can live in the city."
Mr Thorley said in an ideal world, contractors would employ both locals and fly-in/ fly-out workers to achieve a good balance. "This
way contractors are still employing locals and supporting the
neighbouring community, as well as flying in workers from the city," he
said. However, fly-in/ fly-out employment can often be quite difficult to achieve and is not always easy to organise.
"Giving
people the option makes it more viable and increases the chances of
employing the right person for the job and ensuring the workers are
happy with their employment options within the industry," Mr Thorley said.
Thorley
& Associates (who provide technical, professional and executive
recruitment services to the mining, engineering and heavy industrial
sectors).
Neil
Thorley said the current high demand for labour placed the
industry under pressure to find the right person for the job.
"There
has been a recent upsurge in both exploration and mining activity,
increasing the demand for skilled mining related personnel," he said. "We
are already seeing an increase in the fly-in/ fly-out trend growing of
mining opportunities in Western Australia and Queensland to
accommodate this increase." Mr Thorley
said, in previous years, the mining industry had proved to be rather
unstable - with a series of boom-bust periods. He said mining companies constantly restructured their teams and made skilled workers redundant.
"The industry has created its own problems by decreasing the availability of local labour," he said. "After
a major restructure of labour forces in the mining industry over the
past several years, a number of mining personnel decided to trade in
their work boots and hard hats for other more reliable occupations,
based in major cities. "We need to minimise
this merry-go-round of restructuring redundancies and employ a mixture
of permanent local and fly-in/ fly-out workers to provide an ideal
balance in the workplace and the industry."
