Resource sector recruitment on the rise

Jobs in mining are on the rise, according to the latest figures from employment site SEEK. “The decline in job advertising associated with the mining downturn looks to have finally turned,” SEEK spokeswoman Sarah Macartney said. “Job ads on SEEK for mining, resources and energy across Australia rose 23 per cent year on year from October to December 2016 when compared to the same period in 2015.” The change in Queensland was more pronounced, with job ads increasing 34 per cent in October-December 2016 compared to the last quarter of 2015. SEEK would not release details of the actual number of advertisements involved. SEEK spokeswoman Sarah Macartney. “The top advertised roles on SEEK for the Queensland mining sector from October to December 2016 were mining operations (up 53.3 per cent year on year), engineering and maintenance (up 34.7 per cent) and health, safety and environment (up 92.1 per cent),” Ms Macartney said. In Western Australia, job advertising on SEEK rebounded in the backend of 2016, with a 10 per cent rise compared to October-December 2015. It had previously fallen for 10 consecutive months between September 2015 and June 2016, she said. “This rebound coincided with the rally in commodity prices, though it remains to be seen whether these prices can be sustained,” Ms Macartney said. Ulrich Schild, director of www.fifo.zone, reported an increase of 5-10 per cent since July 2016 in the number of jobs being posted by the sector’s top 10 major operators and subcontractors. The business, owned by www.thejobsearchcoach.net, was founded in 2013 and specifically targets blue and white collar professionals in the resource, mining and civil construction industry. “We post weekly jobs and we service every week over 200 professionals with application and resume writing and job search services,” Mr Schild said. He said the business had experienced several large waves of inquiries from job seekers in the sector in the past six months. Announcements last year relating to Adani’s Carmichael coal project sparked about 500 inquiries for resume and application services, he said. “The announcements and news related to the Balla Balla Infrastructure Group iron ore mine in the Pilbara between Karratha and Port Headland last week sparked another wave of approximately 350 new inquiries,” he said. “There is a lot of press announcing up to 3000 new jobs and that created a run on our business.” News of Rio Tinto’s deal to sell its New South Wales coal assets to Yancoal for $US2.45 billion sparked another run of more than 170 inquiries this week, Mr Schild said.

Resource sector recruitment on the rise

Industry Queensland

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