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WA\u2019s proposed projects are expected to require more than 11,065 new workers by 2029, with the highest demand coming from the mining sector. Credit: Niyazz via Shutterstock.<\/p>\n
For eight years straight, employment in Western Australia\u2019s (WA) mining industry has been climbing. Government data shows that in 2024, the region, which accounts for 47% of Australia\u2019s total mining workforce, registered<\/a> a record high of 135,693 on-site full-time equivalent (FTE) positions filled.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Iron ore, which is concentrated in the Pilbara, was responsible for the lion\u2019s share of WA\u2019s mining workforce (65,359 \u2013 up 4,500 FTE), followed by the currently booming gold sector (33,285 \u2013 up 3,000 FTE) in the Goldfields and mid-west.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\tCombine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n Gavin Lind, CEO of the Mining and Automotive Skills Alliance (AUSMASA), which published its 2025 workforce skills plan Insights for tomorrow<\/a> in August, says WA is expected to account for 40% of the nation\u2019s resource workforce growth over the next five years, reflecting its huge share of the national industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n This growth mirrors a wider trend across Australia\u2019s mining sector where vacancies remain at record levels, surpassing peaks from the 2011\u201312 mining boom, with skills shortages widespread, according to the report. \u00a0<\/p>\n On the ground, the situation is overt, says Steve Heather, managing director of WA-based MPI Recruitment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u202fis acute demand being witnessed in every technical discipline across mine geology, engineering and processing, with the underground environment the biggest driver for the significant demand lift,\u201d he says.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Underground technical skills in particular are in \u201chot demand\u201d. <\/p>\n \u201cWe can only see this getting tighter in the short-to-medium term; a big driver [is] the need to maintain very unique safety standards across the underground environment,\u201d Heather says.\u00a0<\/p>\n Lind also notes that \u201cmany traditional manual roles are evolving, creating new opportunities for upskilled professionals and technical newcomers in the mining sector\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Recruiters of other roles say they are seeing demand for heavy duty diesel fitters, MC and HC truck drivers, mechanical trades, mining engineers with 3-5 years\u2019 experience, open-pit mining geologists, highly experienced plant operators and underground charge-up operators.\u00a0<\/p>\n Layoffs in open-pit operations in the region haven\u2019t been enough to plug the gap \u2013 especially as open-pit mining skills are not easily transferrable in the short-to-medium term to underground mines, according to Heather.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAs a result, many traditional manual roles are evolving, creating new opportunities for upskilled professionals and technical newcomers in the mining sector,\u201d he says.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n WA layoffs \u00a0<\/p>\n In response to continued\u202flow lithium and nickel prices, several mines in WA have gone into care and maintenance, including BHP\u2019s Nickel West and West Musgrave projects<\/a>; IGO\u2019s Cosmos and Forrestania mines<\/a>; and First Quantum\u2019s Ravensthorpe mine. Nickel jobs have dropped<\/a> by more than 3,200 (FTE). \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cEmployer reports indicate that WA\u2019s mining workforce underwent significant changes during 2024\u201325,\u201d says Lind. He points to BHP, which cut around 100 roles in its iron ore division, mainly targeting middle management and support teams, to streamline operations. The company\u2019s nickel operations were also placed in care and maintenance, affecting around 800 operational jobs, although many were redeployed, he notes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Rio Tinto also reduced its Pilbara workforce by around 500, driven by rising production costs. In February, the company cut approximately 120 in-house tradespeople roles from its Pilbara mine site services division, outsourcing the work to contractors as part of ongoing cost-cutting. The change is part of broader operational adjustments across Rio\u2019s WA iron ore operations, which employ more than 17,000 people across 17 mines, says Lind.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Dani Tamati, founder and director of recruitment company THE resources HUB, says Tier 3 and Tier 4 mining companies involved in lithium and nickel are the ones really \u201cfeeling the pinch\u201d and in response have made a raft of redundancies. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe Tier 1s are not seeing that trickle down as much at the moment, as happened in the downturn of 2012,\u201d she says.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Nickel and lithium only account for a small section of the WA mining industry, however, and so aren\u2019t affecting the bigger employment picture in the region.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Tamati says that, along with the technical roles, her office is also seeing an influx of sales roles for mining services, with people trying to move from oil and gas into mining \u2013 which is not always an easy sector transition.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe mining industry, in WA in particular, wants to ensure whoever we are bringing into the fold in a sales role already has a network and established connections and knows the products \u2013 it is not as easy a transition as some think.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Migrant workers in WA\u2019s mining workforce\u00a0<\/p>\n So, how is WA\u2019s mining industry filling roles? In part, through migrant workers, who have become essential to the mining workforce, says Lind. \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe number of skilled migrants has increased over the years, indicating an ongoing need for their skills,\u201d he says.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2023, the Labor government launched a Skilled Migrant Job Connect Programme, which includes a subsidy to help skilled WA-based migrants access financial support of up to $7,500, and gain employment in occupations commensurate with their formal overseas qualifications, skills and experience.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite this, Harriet Banda, founder of Bantu Agency, an Australian-owned recruitment agency based in Perth and Zambia, believes the cost of placing migrant workers is still prohibitive. It can cost up to A$20,000 per candidate for training, acquiring an Australian driver\u2019s licence, equipment and sponsorship, she says. \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe cost is prohibitive and there is no scale. Whether your business makes A$100m or $2m you still pay the 482 visa cost, which is unfair,\u201d she says. \u00a0<\/p>\n Heather agrees that the Australian Government is simply not responding fast enough to simplify the process of bringing in foreign technical workers.\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n His company has noticed more of the medium-to-larger scale companies with global operations starting to bring employees from outside of Australia to fill gaps and share knowledge.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFor these companies, offering their internal talent the opportunity for cross-country transfers, assuming the role is on the skills immigration priority list, is attractive,\u201d he says. \u00a0<\/p>\n Attracting candidates amid rising labour costs\u00a0<\/p>\n To win candidates miners are deploying different strategies, including getting creative with financial incentives. Tamati says one of her clients implemented a sign-on and a six-month retention bonus, after which employees receive a monthly bonus for staying at the company.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey were paying at the lower end for mechanical trades but with the retention bonus it was keeping their employees happy,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.mining-technology.com\/wp-content\/themes\/goodlife-wp-B2B\/assets\/images\/GMS-logo.svg\"){kind=logo}
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Breakdown of FTE mining jobs by commodity in Australia, 2024. Credit: Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration, \u201cEconomic indicators\u201d.<\/p>\n
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Dani Tamati, founder and director of THE resources HUB at a WA mining site. Credit: Dani Tamati.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/WA-2029-workforce-1024x446.png\")
New workforce demand in Australia by skills group, 2024\u201329. Source: AREEA.<\/p>\n![\"Email](\"https:\/\/www.mining-technology.com\/wp-content\/themes\/goodlife-wp-B2B\/assets\/images\/newsletter-new.svg\")
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