WA’s hard coronavirus border complicates looming resource skills crunch

WA’s resources sector is facing a skills crunch reminiscent of the last mining boom, with estimates the State will need more than 8000 extra workers in the next 12 to 18 months. The shortage is set to be exacerbated by WA’s hard border closure that is making it difficult for companies to source workers from outside the State and forcing them to relocate workers here indefinitely. Modelling by the WA Chamber of Minerals and Energy shows WA will need 8049 additional workers to meet peak recovery demand to the end of 2020 and into 2021. The forecast again highlights the resilience of the local sector, which has managed to operate uninterrupted amid the coronavirus pandemic. Activity is being bolstered by surging prices for two of the State’s key commodities, iron ore and gold, which are helping to shield WA and the nation from the worst of the COVID-related economic shock. The sector is already seeing high demand for traditional tradespeople and experienced technicians, frontline supervisors and maintainers such as heavy diesel fitters, as well as engineers, geologists, metallurgists and technology specialists. CME chief executive Paul Everingham said there was also increased demand for safety, emergency and medical support roles. He said the data foreshadowed a considerable “hotting up of competition for key skills”. The labour market tightness in the sector looms as Premier Mark McGowan said at the weekend he could not give a date when WA’s hard border closure would end. It also follows Mr McGowan shutting down hopes from some in the sector for a so-called FIFO bubble that would allow interstate staff to work in designated quarantine zones. Instead he insisted companies should train and hire locals. The CME said it was not calling for an easing of the State’s hard border, nor did it expect any special treatment for its workers. However, CME policy and advocacy director Rob Carruthers said a suite of responses would be needed from industry and government to respond to potential skills shortages. “Industry is going to have to think deeply about its business models and most companies are already doing that,” he said. “A number are committing that any roles they hire from now on are just going to be from WA... and others have already relocated staff here where they can.” Mr Carruthers said the sector was also committed to training and retraining local workers over the next year to help meet shortages. The CME estimates that only about 1 to 2 per cent of the workforce still needed to be sourced from outside of WA amid the COVID operating environment. They include highly specialised roles that not only require years of training but years of experience to perform competently and safely. Shortages are being felt most acutely in the ranks of workers needed for maintenance shutdowns in mining and so-called turnarounds in oil and gas. Woodside, for instance, is trying to co-ordinate a team of specialist workers for a big maintenance turnaround at its Karratha gas plant. Mr Carruthers said the types of people needed weren’t suitable for relocation because they entered WA for a particular task and then returned home. “So that’s where the constraints on the mobility of that labour is causing a few challenges,” he said. Workers can apply for exemptions but strict rules, delays in processing and the 14-day quarantine period are hindering their timely deployment.