spurning the little towns
Bernie Siddall
WA Mining Club
Past President and Life Member
Periodically,
Minesite
asks Bernie Siddall for his thoughts on some of the more pressing issues facing the Western Australian
mining industry. Unafraid of considering the thornier aspects, this year Bernie provides a thought-provoking and lively reflection
drawn from personal experience about the social repercussions a FIFO workforce has on the local community.
As a former Manager Metallurgy of the remote Agnew minesite (now operated by BHP Nickel West), Bernie has fond memories
of living and working in a regional resource setting. In this article, Bernie takes a look at two contrasting ways of accommodating
a workforce in the resources industry and explores issues of work/life balance set against the two models. He emphasises that his
views specifically exclude construction workers, and that he has no political wheelbarrow to push for improving regional towns.
arrangement and some semblance of ‘normality’ once the worker
flies out to a city or regional hub.
The opportunity to earn a high salary, coupled with a chance
to live in a large city when off-duty is very attractive for many
FIFO workers and their families. Unfortunately however, FIFO
employees reportedly have a much higher incidence of divorce,
suicide, substance abuse and HIV infection. Issues of health care
and support services have arisen as the ebb and flow of the roster
take their toll on relationships and families. For those left behind,
the big issues are isolation, loneliness, trust and resentment.
The Leinster experience
“
We had some bloody good times at Leinster in the early days,”
said Rocky, “and Liz and I still keep in contact with the friends that
we made there”. I too had lived, with my family, in Leinster and
the remarks set me thinking about what it was that was so special
about the place – what was it that endeared it to so many?
In the opinion of (the late) Arthur Daffen, the township
coordinator charged in 1974 with designing the town, the previous
generation of Western Australian mining towns had failed. The
single men’s quarters were frequently trashed after drunken
brawls, and the wives of employees were stuck in remote locations
with no job and few amenities. The refrigerated air conditioning
created a barrier from the outside world, and the accepted
means of transport for even the smallest journey was an
air-conditioned car.
The result was predictable and expensive for the companies
involved. Turnover of single men averaged 300% per year,
whilst married couples stayed a little longer at 10 to 12 months.
Recruitment and training were high cost activities that yielded
little benefit.
Looking for positive solutions
The Agnew management group sought far and wide for answers
to the turnover problem at the Leinster operations. Most help
came from organisational development workshops facilitated by
Queensland and Sydney university academics. Top of the list was
the ‘single men’s quarters’ issue and it was not rocket science to
arrive at the answer – employ single women! This led to the more
general problem of providing a worthwhile life for all the women
in town.
So we workshopped approaches to utilising women in the
workforce and job design. Salient features from this brainstorming
effort were to offer: job sharing and part-time employment (with
no barriers to shift work for women), zero tolerance to harassment,
co-mingling single quarters of men and women, a community
atmosphere where all were welcomed and respected, and a
childcare centre.
On the employment front, the policy of utilising people
who already lived in remote communities was also actively
implemented. It meant that aptitude and current location were
more important than previous experience in the mining industry,
and it applied mainly in the process, services and infrastructure
areas. It was reasoned that, for instance, farmhands would have
good mechanical understanding and would be used to living in
remote areas.
Thefoe inFIFO
The single quarters’ in Leinster; in harmony with nature
In February 2013, the House Standing Committee on Regional
Australia tabled its report on the inquiry into the use of ‘fly-in, fly-
out’ (FIFO) and ‘drive-in, drive-out’ (DIDO) workforce practices in
regional Australia. The advantages and disadvantages of FIFO are
well documented in the inquiry’s report.
The Mayor of Kalgoorlie-Boulder Ron Yuryevich said in his
submission to the inquiry: “It is the small regional communities
that have laid the foundations for this booming industry, and
spurning those communities will be to the ongoing detriment
of our great nation”. A major concern about the use of FIFO
operations is the perceived bypassing of small and regional
towns and their way of life, in favour of a temporary camp living
Minesite 2013
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