| Fly in Fly out (FIFO) Worker Promotion |
| Saturday, 10 September 2011 17:02 |
|
Cairns is already a FIFO hub with more than 3,000 people per week flying in and out from mining sites in Papua New Guinea, the Northern Territory and western Queensland. I met recently with the managing directors and CEOs of 11 of the nation's biggest mining companies to talk about how Cairns workers can get employment in mines. I was able to promote the virtues of people being based in Cairns: great tropical lifestyle; a choice of rural acreages, 5 star apartments, beach side dwellings within 45 minutes of the airport; a supportive environment for stay-at-home spouses with all our organisations, sporting and cultural facilities; innovative and responsive training facilities. The companies spoke of thousands of jobs being available and of having to recruit overseas because of not being able to find the workers they need; pipe fitters, welders, riggers and equipment operators are in particular demand. Jo Pyne at TAFE and Sharon Dawson of the Chamber of Commerce's Resources Taskforce are also passionately extolling the virtues of Cairns and our capacity to be able to train and supply workers for the new projects commencing in central Queensland. A FIFO Coordinator position - currently being advertised - is also going to drive this important initiative.In addition, a mining expo will be held on 17 October at the Sebel in Lake St to bring together the mining companies, training institutions and workers who would like to train or re-train to get jobs in the mining industry. Watch out for more details |
