Salaries Boom In WA Resource Sector

During the past quarter, salaries and rates have increased by an average of 5%, with a number of roles experiencing spectacular rises of up to a third. Increased demand means further pay rises are expected for resource-sector employees in WA through the rest of 2010.

Both the Mining and Oil & Gas sectors have seen increased demand for engineers and construction, contract and procurement managers, as well as sharp rises in payscales – by as much as 30% for some contract roles. It should be noted that many of the roles that are experiencing dramatic pay increases were subject to rate cuts of around 10% during the downturn of 2008 – 2009.

For example, Senior Engineering Managers in the Oil & Gas sector, who were being paid around $202,500 in February, have seen their pay rise by more than a third to around $281,600. Contracts Managers in both the Oil & Gas and Mining sectors have enjoyed a pay rise of around 30% with senior roles now attracting salaries of $228,800.

These salary increases have occurred against a backdrop of volatility, with nervousness around the proposed Resources Super Tax leading some employers to slow their recruitment on certain projects. However, the large number of new projects initiated in the Oil, Gas and Mining sectors has meant a net increase in hiring levels. In fact, at least one of Ambit’s clients has been hiring new staff at a rate of up to 30 new contractors per week.

Peter Acheson, CEO of Ambit Recruitment (a Peoplebank brand) comments that the spectacular rises signal that the market is returning to a state of skills shortage.

“Until now, demand for resource-sector workers has been met from within local and industry sources. However, as the pool of available, experienced professionals is exhausted, there’s upward pressure on rates – which is now becoming evident.”

“Continued demand, will see the upward pay trend continue – which in turn, could trigger a period of high turnover as employees are lured toward employers offering higher salaries.”

“WA’s resources sector will need some 38,000 additional employees for the estimated $170 billion of projects currently scheduled. While Ambit will be seeking to meet demand from international and other market sectors, there can be no doubt that that demand is going to continue to outstrip supply and that salaries and rates will continue rising.”