Opportunity ? Or an illusion !

Yesterday, the " Resources Sector Jobs Board " went online.   The mining industry is now required to list all jobs becoming available at their mine sites and thus offer them to Australian job seekers before they make application to bring in foreign guest workers.

In particular, this has been a response to Gina Rinehart's need for 1,700 workers to build and run her Roy Hill iron ore mine in Western Australia.   The " Jobs board " is certainly a good idea, but it only goes part of the way in offering opportunity to Australia's unemployed.     Roy Hill is a " Greenfields " site.   It is an entirely new mine and it will be located in a part of Australia with no nearby town or facilities.   Those considering applying for a job there will need to know exactly what is involved before they can make a decision.

There are two types of job opportunities involved.  Probably years of work for those whose job it is to construct the mine, and then jobs for the permanent workers who will run it operationally.  Applicants need to know just what facilities will be provided by way of accommodation - and whether these jobs will offer relocation for them and their families.

If the guest worker option goes ahead the work force will probably be entirely composed of single men housed in barracks style accommodation.   That is certainly reasonable in the initial construction stage, but family applicants will need to know if they are being offered " fly in/fly out " conditions, or whether they will be separated from their families indefinitely.

Employees will also need to know if the company has plans to create a " mining town " to operate it's mine, or whether the operational stage will be on a fly in/fly out basis.    That will involve the state government. No family can reasonably be expected to move to a remote region unless there is a time specification to provide amenities such as schools, housing and medical facilities.

Along with the listing of skilled jobs, there is a need to have a clear plan of how this mine and it's work force will live

 - and that seems to be the missing component.   Without that, the number of people willing to move from the south eastern states to the remote mining areas will obviously dwindle to a very few - and that could suit the mining companies if their preference is for guest workers.

The cheapest alternative is either barracks style accommodation or a fly in/fly out arrangement and that favours guest workers.   It will cost a lot of money to create a mining town with all the necessary facilities - and that will be at a cost to both the mining company and the state government involved.

At present, this " Jobs Board " only does half the job !

This could be a ploy to slant the application results in a favoured direction, unless along with the job descriptions comes a detailed plan of what living facilities will be provided.