Mining & Resources
Mining Workforce Solutions for Remote Australia
HBG supplies operators, tradespeople, and engineers to mining and resources operations across Australia. FIFO and DIDO rosters, pre-employment medicals, drug & alcohol testing, and site inductions — all handled before your workers land on-site.
Why HBG
Built for the Demands of Mining
Mining recruitment isn’t just about finding operators — it’s about finding people who can work safely in remote, high-risk environments and show up on time, every swing.
FIFO & DIDO Capability
We recruit and deploy workers for fly-in fly-out and drive-in drive-out rosters across Australia's mining regions — from the Pilbara and Goldfields to the Bowen Basin and Hunter Valley. Roster management and travel logistics coordinated end-to-end.
Pre-Employment Medicals & D&A
Every mining candidate is deployed with current pre-employment medical clearances, drug and alcohol testing, and fitness-for-duty assessments. We manage the scheduling and compliance so your site team doesn't have to.
Remote Site Experience
Mining sites aren't the city. Our candidates have genuine remote site experience — they understand camp life, isolation protocols, fatigue management, and the discipline required to work safely in harsh, remote environments.
Compliance-First Approach
Mining is one of the most heavily regulated sectors in Australia. We ensure all workers meet site-specific induction requirements, hold valid high-risk work licences, and comply with principal contractor safety management systems.
Roles We Fill
Operators, Trades & Technical Professionals
Labour hire and permanent placement for surface and underground mining operations across Australia.
Plant & Equipment Operators
All operators verified for relevant plant tickets and mine experience
Trades & Professional
Qualified tradespeople and technical specialists for mine sites
Operations We Staff
Surface, Underground & Exploration
Open Cut Mining
Surface mining operations for coal, iron ore, gold, and base metals. Experienced operators for haul trucks, excavators, dozers, and graders.
Underground Mining
Underground hard rock and coal operations. Bogger operators, drillers, shotcreters, and underground electricians with current tickets and mine experience.
Processing & Plant
Processing plant operators, maintenance fitters, and electricians for crushers, mills, flotation, and leach pad operations.
Exploration & Drilling
Diamond drillers, RC drillers, field geologists, and geo-technicians for greenfield and brownfield exploration programs.
Industry Insight
Australia’s Mining & Resources Sector
Australia is one of the world’s largest mining nations, with the mining and resources sector contributing over $300 billion annually to the national economy. The country is the world’s leading exporter of iron ore, lithium, and alumina, and a major producer of coal, gold, copper, zinc, and rare earth elements. With mining operations spread across vast and often remote regions of Western Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, and the Northern Territory, the sector relies heavily on a mobile, FIFO-capable workforce that can be deployed to sites hundreds or thousands of kilometres from the nearest major city.
The mining workforce skills shortage remains one of the sector’s most pressing challenges. Strong commodity prices and a pipeline of new mine developments and expansions have driven demand for experienced dump truck operators, excavator operators, drillers, plant mechanics, mine electricians, and mining engineers to levels not seen since the previous resources boom. Competition for skilled workers is fierce, with major miners, mid-tier operators, and mining services contractors all competing for the same limited pool of experienced candidates. The growth of the battery minerals sector, including lithium, nickel, and cobalt mining, has added a new layer of demand on top of traditional commodities.
HBG has built a mining recruitment operation designed to meet these challenges. With over 128,000 candidates on our database and more than 10,800 inducted workers, we maintain a large and active pool of mining-ready personnel who have current medicals, drug and alcohol clearances, and site inductions. Our mining recruitment team understands the operational realities of remote site work, roster management, and the compliance frameworks that govern Australia’s mining industry.
Compliance
Inductions, Medicals & Licensing
Mining is one of the most heavily regulated industries in Australia, and every worker deployed to a mine site must meet strict compliance requirements before they set foot on-site. Pre-employment medicals are mandatory for all mining roles and typically include a Coal Board Medical (for coal operations in NSW and Queensland), a standard mining medical assessment covering musculoskeletal fitness, audiometry, spirometry, and drug and alcohol screening. Workers on Queensland coal mines must hold a current Coal Mine Workers’ Health Scheme medical, while NSW coal operations require medicals compliant with Coal Services Health and Safety requirements.
Induction requirements for mining operate on multiple levels. All workers must hold a Standard 11 (generic mining induction) or its state equivalent — this is the baseline competency requirement for working on any mine site in Australia. In Queensland, this is the Standard 11 Mining Induction, while in NSW, workers require a state-approved generic mining induction. Beyond the generic induction, every mine site has its own site-specific induction that covers emergency procedures, communication protocols, hazard identification, and site-specific safety rules. These site inductions can range from a few hours to multiple days depending on the operation. HBG coordinates all induction requirements before deployment, ensuring workers arrive on-site ready to commence work on day one of their roster.
High-risk work licences (HRWLs) are required for many mining roles, including crane operation, rigging, scaffolding, and work at heights. Plant operators must hold verified competency assessments (VOCs) for each piece of equipment they operate. HBG maintains verified records of every worker’s licences, VOCs, inductions, and medical clearances, with automated alerts for upcoming expiry dates to prevent compliance gaps.
Role Detail
Key Mining Roles Explained
Dump Truck Operator
Dump truck operators are among the most in-demand roles across Australian mining. They operate rigid and articulated haul trucks ranging from 40-tonne ADTs on smaller operations to ultra-class trucks exceeding 400 tonnes on major iron ore and coal mines. Operators must hold a verified competency (VOC) for the specific truck class they are operating, a valid driver’s licence, and have completed the site’s generic and site-specific inductions. Experience with GPS-guided autonomous haulage systems is increasingly valued as major mines adopt semi-autonomous fleets. Typical rosters include 2:1 (two weeks on, one week off), 8:6 (eight days on, six days off), or 7:7 even-time rosters depending on the mine and operator.
Excavator Operator
Excavator operators in mining work with machines significantly larger than those used in civil construction, typically ranging from 100-tonne to 800-tonne class hydraulic excavators and rope shovels. They are responsible for loading haul trucks in open cut operations and must work in close coordination with dump truck operators, spotters, and pit supervisors. A VOC for the specific excavator class is required, along with proven experience in production mining environments. Operators must understand dig plans, bench heights, batter angles, and grade control requirements. Senior excavator operators with experience on ultra-class machines such as the Liebherr R9800 or Hitachi EX8000 command premium rates and are among the hardest roles to fill in Australian mining.
Plant Mechanic / Fitter
Plant mechanics (also called heavy diesel fitters) maintain and repair the heavy mobile equipment used in mining operations — haul trucks, excavators, dozers, graders, loaders, and water carts. They must hold a Certificate III in Engineering (Mechanical Trade) or equivalent, plus VOCs for working on specific equipment types. Mining fitters work in workshop and field maintenance environments, performing scheduled services, breakdown repairs, component change-outs, and fault diagnosis. Experience with Caterpillar, Komatsu, Liebherr, and Hitachi equipment is highly sought after. Shutdown maintenance periods create peak demand for fitters, and HBG regularly supplies crews of 10 or more fitters for planned shutdown events.
Mine Electrician
Mine electricians are responsible for the installation, maintenance, and repair of electrical systems on mine sites, including fixed plant electrical systems, mobile equipment electrics, and high-voltage distribution infrastructure. They must hold a Certificate III in Electrotechnology (Electrician) and an unrestricted electrical licence, plus specific mine electrician competencies for the state in which they are working. In Queensland, mine electricians working on coal mines must hold additional statutory qualifications. Underground mine electricians require additional competencies related to flameproof and intrinsically safe electrical equipment. Mine electricians are one of the most critical and hardest-to-source trade roles in Australian mining.
National Coverage
Mining Recruitment Across Australia
HBG supplies mining personnel to operations across every major mining region in Australia. In Western Australia, we service the Pilbara iron ore operations, the Goldfields-Esperance gold and nickel mines, the Mid West magnetite and rare earth projects, and the Kimberley region. Our WA coverage includes both the established major mining hubs and emerging battery minerals projects in the lithium triangle around Greenbushes, Mt Holland, and Kathleen Valley.
In Queensland, we recruit for the Bowen Basin metallurgical and thermal coal operations, the North West Minerals Province around Mt Isa and Cloncurry, and the emerging vanadium, copper, and rare earth projects in the state’s north-west. NSW mining clients include Hunter Valley coal operations, Western NSW gold and copper mines at Cadia, Cowal, and Northparkes, and Broken Hill zinc and lead operations. South Australia is serviced with personnel for Olympic Dam, Prominent Hill, and Carrapateena copper-gold operations, as well as Whyalla steel-related mining. In the Northern Territory, we supply workers to gold mines in the Pine Creek and Tanami regions and manganese operations on Groote Eylandt. Our candidates FIFO from all major Australian capital cities, with charter flight and commercial flight coordination managed as part of our deployment process.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about mining recruitment, compliance, and FIFO workforce deployment.
What FIFO roster patterns do your mining candidates work?
Our mining candidates are experienced with all standard FIFO roster patterns used across Australian mining operations. The most common rosters include 2:1 (two weeks on, one week off), 8:6 (eight days on, six days off), 7:7 (seven days on, seven days off or even time), 5:2 (five days on, two days off for DIDO roles), and 4:3 (four days on, three days off). Some operations run longer rosters such as 3:1 (three weeks on, one week off) or 9:5 patterns. We match candidates to roster patterns that suit both the client’s operational requirements and the worker’s preferences, which significantly improves retention rates on longer-term assignments. Roster details, shift lengths, and travel arrangements are confirmed with every worker before deployment.
What is a Coal Board Medical and who needs one?
A Coal Board Medical (officially the Coal Mine Workers’ Health Scheme medical in Queensland, or Coal Services medical in NSW) is a comprehensive health assessment required for anyone working on a coal mine in Australia. The medical includes a chest X-ray, spirometry (lung function test), audiometry (hearing test), drug and alcohol screening, and a general fitness-for-duty assessment. The purpose is to establish a baseline health record and detect any conditions that may be aggravated by coal dust exposure, noise, or the physical demands of mining work. Coal Board Medicals are typically valid for five years for workers under 40 and three years for workers 40 and over, though individual mine sites may require more frequent assessments. HBG coordinates Coal Board Medicals through approved medical providers before deployment.
What inductions are required before working on a mine site?
Mining inductions operate on two levels. First, every worker needs a generic mining induction — in Queensland this is the Standard 11 Mining Induction, and in NSW it is the state-approved generic mining induction (previously known as the Standard 11). This generic induction covers fundamental mining safety principles, hazard identification, emergency procedures, and legislative requirements. It is a multi-day course completed through an approved RTO. Second, every mine site has its own site-specific induction that covers the particular hazards, communication systems, emergency assembly points, operating procedures, and safety rules specific to that operation. Site inductions can take anywhere from a few hours to several days depending on the mine. HBG ensures all generic inductions are completed and current before a worker is assigned to a site, and we coordinate site-specific induction scheduling with the client.
How often is drug and alcohol testing conducted on mine sites?
Drug and alcohol testing in Australian mining is conducted at multiple points. Pre-employment testing is mandatory before a worker commences on any mine site. Once on-site, workers are subject to random testing programs that can occur at any time during their roster. The frequency of random testing varies by mine site and operator, but most operations test a significant percentage of their workforce each month. Testing is also conducted for-cause after any incident, near-miss, or reasonable suspicion by a supervisor. Some sites also conduct blanket testing at the start of each swing, where every worker returning from R&R is tested before being allowed to commence their shift. HBG conducts pre-employment drug and alcohol testing through accredited pathology providers as a standard part of our mining mobilisation process. Workers who return a non-negative result are not deployed.
What accommodation is provided on remote mine sites?
Accommodation on remote mine sites is typically provided in purpose-built mining camps (also called villages) located near the mine operation. Standard accommodation includes a single ensuite room (known as a donga or demountable) with air conditioning, a bed, wardrobe, desk, and bathroom. Camp facilities typically include a wet mess (recreational area), gymnasium, swimming pool, laundry facilities, and a dining hall with commercial kitchen providing meals for all shifts. Some newer camps offer premium accommodation with larger rooms, entertainment systems, and upgraded recreational facilities. Accommodation and meals are provided by the mine operator at no cost to the worker. Travel between the worker’s home city and the mine site is coordinated by HBG, typically via charter flights from capital city airports to the mine’s airstrip, with bus transfers from the airstrip to the camp.
What mining licences are required by state?
Mining licence and competency requirements vary by state and role. In Queensland, workers on coal mines are governed by the Coal Mining Safety and Health Act 1999, which requires specific statutory positions to hold Recognised Standard competencies, and all workers to hold a Standard 11 induction. The Mines Inspectorate issues Certificates of Competency for statutory positions such as Site Senior Executive (SSE), Underground Mine Manager, and Open Cut Examiner. In NSW, the Work Health and Safety (Mines and Petroleum Sites) Act 2013 governs mining operations, with similar statutory position requirements. Western Australia operates under the Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994 and requires a WA-specific mining induction. All states require plant operators to hold verified competency assessments for each piece of equipment. HBG maintains a comprehensive understanding of state-specific requirements and ensures every worker meets the compliance requirements of the state and site where they will be deployed.
Staffing a Mine Site? Talk to HBG
Whether you need 5 operators for the next swing or a full maintenance crew for a shutdown, HBG delivers mining-ready workers with medicals, D&A clearances, and inductions sorted before they arrive on-site.
FIFO/DIDO workforce solutions with full pre-employment compliance.