Speaking to more than 400 delegates at World Gold 2019 earlier this month, Regis Resources Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Jim Beyer encouraged all participants to do their bit in educating the next generation, for the sake of the industry’s future.
Supported by the Gold Industry Group, Jim Beyer’s keynote on day two brought to light a critical issue that continues to impact gold mining and the broader resources industry in one way or another: the concerning drop in the number of STEM-skilled Australian workers.
An approach to learning and development that integrates the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, STEM helps students to develop key skills including problem solving. Reports from the Minerals Council of Australia indicate the overall student participation and outcomes in STEM subjects have declined.
“Quality people are the critical ingredient for us to have a successful, productive and safe industry that makes the kind of economic contribution that we’re getting,” he said.
Using the growth of engineer numbers in Australia as an example, Jim explained that in 2006 48% of the total engineers working in Australia were those that had come over from and been trained internationally. In 2016, that number had increased to 58%. Whilst this diversity was a point positive for the workforce, it also expresses the lack of Australian workers who have the necessary skills for future careers.
Jim further pointed out that the New South Wales University currently has six students enrolled to study mining engineering, compared to the 120 students they had in the same course four to five years earlier. Similarly, during the last mining boom Australia saw 300 graduates enter this field, while the industry now faces a total of 50 in the next two to three years. With females represent 47% of Australia’s total workforce, only 7% of the nation’s current engineers are women.
“It’s all basically telling us the same story: we’re just not getting people in. We’re always struggling for people; we haven’t got enough. Our industry is in serious risk of not having the right brainpower,” Mr Beyer said.
According to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, currently 75% of the country’s fastest growing occupations require some level of STEM skills or knowledge.
Research carried out in 2016 states that STEM disciplines are perceived by students as being too complex and requiring too much effort, with students deeming them to be too hard and thus choosing other career paths. Girls were found to be even less interested in STEM subjects, even despite being good at them.
Results from a Student Insight survey conducted for the AusIMM and Australian Government, collecting responses from up to 3,000 students aged 15-20 years, saw 60% of those asked about mining say they knew nothing about the industry. Of the 40% who indicated they knew something, 75% said they were interested in pursuing a career in resources and mining.
“That looks like a problem, but it actually represents a huge opportunity,” he said.
The WA State Government, universities, groups such as the Chamber of Minerals and Energy, the Minerals Council of Australia and Gold Industry Group, and some individual companies are already working to address the issue, either focusing on the diversity imbalance or generating interest in STEM, but Mr Beyer urged delegates to understand that true progress is up to the industry as a whole.
“We need to be doing as much as possible to address this issue. It’s a boom and bust game, and we have to be conscious of that. We all have a role to play. We need to take every opportunity to promote the criticality of STEM not only for our industry, but for our nation’s future,” he said.
While social media and friendship groups have a role to play, the single biggest influence on what children are interested in and what career path they choose to follow is their parents.
My Beyer encouraged participants to join the conversation and keep building awareness, getting both students and their parents to understand the need for participating in STEM subjects at school, by explaining the real-world applications. By drawing the relationship between STEM at school and STEM at work, students are immediately more engaged in STEM subjects.
“You need to have those conversations, when you’re at a barbecue or school function, about what STEM does and how important it is.
“Find out what your company is doing, get involved and take a leadership role. If something isn’t being done, see what you can do to get it moving. Look for opportunities to act as the vital link. See if there’s a chance to go and talk to a class about what it is that you do, try and help them make that connection,” he suggested.
If you work for a Gold Industry Group member company, get in touch with us to find out the ways you can champion Australia’s gold industry.
About World Gold 2019
Part of the World Gold Conference series, World Gold 2019 was a joint venture between The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM), the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum. The event gathered resources industry professionals from across the globe to discuss all aspects of gold mining. Nine keynote speakers presented on major technical innovations and technologies to unlock sustained value from gold deposits, whilst addressing the topic: ‘What does the future hold for gold?’