Xstrata Copper North Queensland.pdf - Mount Isa Mines

Our people
case study
Transitioning our workforce through
workplace planning and support
For the past three years at Ernest Henry Mining, we have been
consulting with our workers on Life of Mine planning, and will
continue to work and communicate with employees and contractors
as the site transitions to underground mining operations in 2011.
Ernest Henry Mining’s open pit operation is
scheduled for closure in August 2011 and
the closure will affect approximately 200
employees. A transition strategy is helping to
ensure a smooth transition for all employees,
either through redeployment within Ernest
Henry Mining (EHM) and Xstrata, or within
the mining industry.
EHM’s transition initiatives include
transitioning employees from open pit to
underground roles; completion interviews;
and offering roles internally.
The move to underground mining presented
an employment opportunity to open pit
miners, but the two mining environments
and practices are distinctly different. Many
miners in this situation find they do not want
to transition from open pit to underground
mining, or when they attempt to transition
they find working underground challenging.
Despite this, EHM was still keen to progress
this initiative as an option for open pit
miners.
By November 2009 EHM had identified which
underground roles could be undertaken
by open pit employees provided adequate
training was undertaken. There were 40
technician roles that could be created for the
current open pit mine production teams to fill.
In late 2009 expressions of interest for
underground roles were called and interviews
commenced in March 2010. All candidates
underwent a rigorous interview process
and were given the opportunity to go
underground to experience conditions.
More than 130 people applied for roles or
enquired about underground employment.
Following this, 74 employees were
interviewed for underground roles, 66
employees went underground for tours and
49 employees were selected for available
roles. To date, 31 employees have accepted
employment in underground roles.
We also conducted a survey of employees
to establish how many were interested in
working in EHM’s underground mining
operation and if not, identifying what
services they required to transition to other
employment either within the business or
externally. Completion interviews were held
with those employees who would be leaving
the business after closure to help finalise
plans for redeployment options.
Completion interviews were undertaken for
all mining and professional staff affected
by the closure. Around 200 interviews were
held over a six month period from September
2010. The interviews identified that most
employees wanted to remain with Ernest
Henry Mining or Xstrata if they were able
to secure work in a similar role to the one
they had previously undertaken for the
business. We have commenced the process
of identifying suitable opportunities for those
employees interested in remaining with us.
An additional workforce planning initiative
involved offering internal roles to employees
in the Mining Department, the first group
of employees affected by the open pit
mine closure. As roles in other areas of
the business became available, they were
advertised internally to attract those people
affected by the pending closure. Four
employees were successful in securing and
transferring to different departments at EHM.
During 2011 we will continue to offer
our support to those employees leaving
the company after closure of the
open pit operation, including financial
and superannuation counselling, and
outplacement services including résumé
preparation, job search advice, and interview
practice. This assistance is provided to help
people successfully move on to the next
stage in their careers.
Kenny Mountford, an EHM employee who is
transitioning from open-pit to underground
mining, said he was interested in gaining
more skills and knowledge in a different
area of mining.
“I applied for an underground position
so that I could gain more skills and
knowledge in another area of mining
at EHM,” said Kenny.
“I enjoyed the physical work the training
involved, and I also enjoyed the workmanship
with the underground personnel.
“The training taught me a lot about
underground mining - new techniques and
the way things are done in this area of
mining.
“EHM provided us with the option of
transitioning to underground, and it’s a good
opportunity for employees who are keen to
do something new within the business and a
chance to better themselves,” he said.
Above: Kenny Mountford – Services Technician
in the EHM open pit mine, completes training
underground after expressing interest in taking
up an underground role
Sustainability Report 2010 51