Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Madeleine King held a roundtable discussion on mining jobs and skills in Brisbane and urged the resources industry to take additional steps to encourage women to pursue careers in the sector.
During the Brisbane Jobs and Skills roundtable, Minister King heard from the industry about their efforts to invest in, develop, and attract skilled workers for the industry to continue to play a crucial role in supporting the Australian economy. She also used the roundtable to outline some of the industry’s workforce challenges and to hear how the government can assist in addressing the issues.
“With intense demand for Australia’s sustainably sourced and high-quality minerals, will come intense demand for the workers responsible for producing them,” Minister King said.
The resources sector employs over 270,000 workers and accounts for 10 per cent of Australia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In the previous fiscal year, earnings from resource and energy exports set a new high of $414 billion.
The Minister has highlighted the need for the resources industry to attract the next generation of mining workers. One way to increase the skills supply is to employ more women in the sector. According to the latest data, around 52,000 women are employed in the resources sector.
Minister King described the recent Enough is Enough report into sexual harassment in Western Australia’s mining industry as a significant wake-up call, emphasising the importance of creating a more inclusive workplace for women. She said governments and industry must work together to ensure a safe and inclusive workplace that welcomes and encourages women to have careers in the mining sector.
The roundtable took place after the House of Representatives passed legislation to lock in Australia’s emissions reduction targets, including an interim target of 43 per cent reductions by 2030.
“Australia’s mining sector will play a crucial role to help Australia reach its net-zero by 2050 commitments, and also be a key to global action to reduce emissions by providing the raw materials for low-emissions technologies, such as rare earths for wind turbines or lithium for batteries,” Minister King said.
The Brisbane Jobs and Skills roundtable was attended by representatives from peak industry bodies, including the Minerals Council of Australia, Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA), Queensland Resources, NSW Minerals Councils, Barada Barna Aboriginal Corporation, community representatives, mining skills organisations, local governments, and the mining equipment, technology and services (METS) sector.
The roundtable discussions will feed into Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ September national Jobs and Skills Summit, which will bring together Australians, unions, employers, and governments to address shared economic challenges that will be considered in a new Employment White Paper.
