Almost half of Australian workers know someone who has changed jobs to take advantage of the resources boom, according to a survey by recruiting experts Hays.

The survey of 606 people across Australia found 31.9% of respondents knew someone who has moved directly into the resources industry to take advantage of the boom. A further 16.5% know someone who has moved to an organisation servicing the industry.

“Our second resources boom is reshaping our labour market and candidates are well aware of the multitude of jobs on offer in the heavy industries,” says Simon Winfield, Senior Regional Director of Hays Resources & Mining.

“They also know the number of jobs available is going to increase in the years ahead. This is not a short-term bubble. For example, BHP Billiton recently announced that Australia's resources industry will need an extra 170,000 workers in the next five years.

“It’s not only engineers or other technical experts who can benefit from the resources boom. Those organisations servicing the resources and mining industry have a range of opportunities, from accountancy to office support, procurement to logistics.

“As the resources industry secures more skilled candidates, the resultant tightening of the candidate pool will filter through to impact all industries right across Australia.

“Basically, any candidate with experience in the resources and mining industry is in a great position to pick and choose the roles they want.”
 

Updated 24 Jan 2012