90,000 more miners needed by 2020

The Minerals Council of Australia says skilled migration and better training programs are needed to ensure the sector can meet growing demand.

A study commissioned by the Council shows another 90,000 workers will be needed in the mining industry by 2020, an increase of 70 per cent on the current workforce.

CEO Mitch Hooke says the sector needs to service the long-term demand for Australian resources.

"We see skilled migration as an acute response to a chronic problem," he said.

"By that I mean, this is the way in which we can fill the gaps up front, but if you're going to have something that's sustainable long term, you need to correct the systemic problems you've got in the current education and training system.

"We spend three times more than any other sector in the country on training but mostly it's in-house because the systems that support our industry just are not there.

"We need reform of the VET [Vocational Education and Training] sector, it's got to respond to the needs of industry, not just have a supply push of institutions putting out people that they actually think suits their whole itinerary."

Source: ABC News - 03.06.2008