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Mining Info people don’t know, that costs time and money

For most people trying to get a mining job, is one of the biggest career steps they will make in their working life. So, it’s always surprising to see (from someone in the industry) how many people jump into it (with both feet) without doing any real research. Sure, they will talk to a friend. Or a mates, mate. Getting some second hand advice, that normally sends them in the wrong direction and costs lots of money. I talk to a number of people each week that tell me the same story. How they have taken some bad advice, which has cost them time money and often a job.

Mining is different from other industries in Australia. Each section of the industry uses its own rules. Some use state rules, some use the national system. So, there isn’t a one size fits all approach you can use to get a job. You have to understand how the area of the industry you are trying to get a job in works. The media don’t understand this either. They seem to want to concentrate exclusively on Iron Ore and Coal, which are only part of the industry. We had a TV reporter start her Perth mining news story with “WA is built on Coal” on channel 7, we have one coal mine in WA, that’s it.

Here are 7 things every new starter needs to know before deciding on where and how they are going to get a mining job. I have done a number of videos on each of these topics that I will include for you to look at.

1, The areas of the industry that have all the new starter jobs.

With Iron Ore and Coal going driverless, there are 3 areas of the industry that need lots of new starts. Hardrock Underground, Exploration and Camp Utility work.

2, Tickets and Qualifications including the S11.

Don’t spend big money on equipment tickets that 80% of the production mining employers can’t use. If the mine you are on comes under the state based system. Then the employer will be required to do onsite equipment tickets and procedures. If you don’t understand how this works in production mining, it can make it hard to get a job.

3, Poaching rules and dead end jobs.

Poaching rules mean you can’t move employers on site. Without leaving site for 6 months before returning with the new employer. This has made moving from a utility job to a production job almost impossible.

4, Will you have to relocate?

This is up to the individual, but it can make it much easier to get a start if you are prepared to relocate to a mining town.

5, How to make a mining friendly resume.

This is where I see people making their biggest mistake. Trying to use one resume to apply for all the different areas of the industry. Like I said above, there’s no one size fits all approach. The resume you write for a Coal mining job in Queensland, is different to the one you need to use to get a Hardrock Underground job.

6, Are they permanent jobs? Or labour hire?

Some areas of the industry like shutdown or civil construction work don’t offer full time jobs. Instead you have a job for the life of the project. Which could be 3 days, 3 weeks, 3 months or up to 18 months for some of the bigger civil jobs. It’s not full time work like the production mining jobs offer.

7, Are you ready to be thrown in the deep end?

Most people that start in an entry level role (not a traineeship) end up getting thrown in the deep end. It’s not anyone’s fault, just the way the system works when we are in a boom and there is lots of movement at all the job levels.

What you should get out of this information and these videos?

That it pays to know how the system works, so you can take advantage of that knowledge. You have to go where the employers need new starters and then give them what they want. Someone that knows how their mining works and what’s going to be expected of them on site. Education is key if you want a career in the induatry.

You can use one of our training packages to get a Hardrock Underground production job. If you type “Underground” into Seek you will see all the jobs come up. The training not only teachers how the mine works, it also goes into great detail about the information your buddy should be showing you on the job, down the hole. The seminar has interview prep and detailed instructions on how to write a mining friendly resume for the Hardrock Underground jobs, saving the cost of getting it done professionally. If you can talk to the employer about how their mine works then you have something to offer them. Not just at the application stage, but in the interview as well. You can read Oscar’s comments left on the video above about how he did the DIY package, followed the instructions and got a job.

Over the years I have been involved with the training and teaching people. Just about everyone that does the training and follows the instructions, gets an interview. Then it’s up to you, to show the mining production employers that you have studied. Once the employer works out you know the rules, language and what is going on, it’s an easy decision to hire. However, the employers have been doing this for a while now. So, it’s just as easy to spot someone that hasn’t studied and is trying to half-arse their way into the industry. It’s easy for employers to say, thanks but no thanks, to people like this, don’t be one of them.

If you want to talk to someone leave your details in the link.

Good luck, hope everyone gets the mining job they want.

Regards

The Mining Coach

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