Mining industry pro's and cons

[zap]

Dh is seriously thinking of making a career change from construction to mining. It will mean he will be working interstate while I live in Melbourne with the boys. So just a few questions

How do you get in with a good mining company as dh will have to start at entry level?

Is the money worth the time apart?

How do you personally cope?

TIA

[ellasmummy]

sorry no answers, but I am interested to know, as my DH is thinking of applying for some FIFO work, mainly for the money. ATM we are tossing up if the time apart would really be worth it.....he has heard you have to know someone to get in, but hasnt seriously looked at it just yet.

[Trillian]

You usually get a job via a labour hire company - not a lot of mining companies directly employ staff and you have to keep your eye out for any direct employment jobs. THere are a few websites around that deal with mining employment though, so have a google for 'mine jobs' and you should get some hits.

Some jobs will offer FIFO (fly in fly out) where they will fly you in and out of the mine, but whether that is worth it or not depends on his shifts - some companies will do several weeks on, 2 weeks off etc, but the mine where my DH works is 4 days on, 4 days off, so that isn't helpful at all for interstate workers. The money will vary greatly too. I know that coal mining pays more than some other mines. One thing to remember is that mining towns are expensive to live in - if he has to pay rent anywhere to live then that will eat into his income and therefore the income he has available for you. But if he gets a job where the accommodation is on site, then that will be a lot cheaper. I know the entry level income for truck drivers at DH's work is only $45K and the top level operators only get about $80k. Dh earns more driving the fuel truck around. But truck drivers at other mines can earn as much as $120K.

[Lenny]

BAL started a thread about this a while back. I'll hunt it out and see if it has anything useful in it.

https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...-mines-163507/

[tellytubby]

My husband worked for a company who did work for the mines.
He now works directly for a coal mine. Which he much rathers.
We live in central coast queensland, so it is 1.5 hour drive, but the mining company buses all of their employees in and out.
His roster is 3 on. 1.5 off. 3 on. 5 off.
This roster works really well for us, as he is away for roughly the same amount of time he was in his old job - but he is getting paid rougly 40k more
As Trillian said, depends what roster you're looking at. I know some do 7 on, 7 off - FIFO. But if he worked there, we would move to the town. As that is a long time away, and I wouldn't have been able to do it. And yes, you need to realise, although the money is great, its expensive to live in mining towns.

There is a lot to consider. Feel free to PM me if you want specific questions answered

[Amy_jellybean]

My husband is a FIFO out worker and to put it bluntly - IT HAS HARD!!!
Yes the money is amazing but I think you need to set a plan of how long he will stay working away for and set clear goals of what you want to achieve with the money otherwise its very easy to spend it and get no further in front. My DH works 2 weeks away and 1 week home. He is on around $148k per year. I think the thing to remember is that money isnt everything. You need to remember that they miss out on a lot (birthdays, wedding anniversaries etc.) and for example this year my DH flies back to work 2 days before xmas so he will be away for xmas and new year. We plan for him to only work away for the next 3 years. We will stash as much money away as we can so that we are in front and he can come home and work mon - fri and the drop in wages wont be an issue.

[Cally]

Yes the money is amazing but I think you need to set a plan of how long he will stay working away for and set clear goals of what you want to achieve with the money otherwise its very easy to spend it and get no further in front.

This is a very good point, it is easy to get used to an increase in salary and then it makes it so much harder to drop back. DH is currently doing higher duties, and the extra income that he is earning just goes straight onto the mortgage as an extra payment each fortnight. So we are geting the benefit of the extra money, but as we are still paying off the mortgage at the same rate as before, if he drops down a level then the only impact is a slight reduction in payments each month - we don't have to cut back on our lifestyle in any way.

[zap]

Thanks ladies! I have my hesitations but dh is like a bull at a gate! I know I will miss him like crazy and so will the boys. He is sending his cv through to recruitment agencies today.