Rio Tinto is recruiting up to 150 new staff at its Hail Creek coal mine in Central Queensland in order to cope with an increase in future demand.
“Hail Creek advertised in June and July this year for a number of new roles across site, in line with our plans to increase production,” Hail Creek general manager operations Andrew Woodley said.
The new positions come after Central Queensland coal mining jobs were lost late last year as commodity prices fell sharply.
The Australian coal market has since staged a recovery, with record production levels being set in recent months.
According to Woodley, the 150 new jobs could be the first of a wave of future employment at the mine.
“We have a range of new equipment that will be coming to site over the next six to eight months, including Hail Creek Mine’s first rope shovel plus ancillary equipment,” he said.
“This equipment will all require more people to operate them.”
The new positions will offer an opportunity for people in the local community to once again become involved in the coal industry, Woodley said.
“The mine will be aiming to continue to target local people for these roles to benefit local employment and the region’s economy,” he said.