***(mcr) get a mention in w.a paper**

hi guys..

(mcr) get mention in paper..see below

Labour short fall puts brakes on WA mining

JOHN PHACEAS



A severe labour shortage is starting to bite in the Eastern Goldfields, as new generation nickel miners compete for a shrinking pool of skilled workers.

Kambalda nickel producer Mincor Resources, which operates two mines and plans to open two more in the next six months, yesterday blamed manpower shortages for sliding output so far this year.

Mincor, the biggest independent producer in the Kambalda region, said it had been affected by labour shortages since January, largely caused by a wave of new developments in the region on the back of rising commodity prices over the last two years.

Nickel prices have fallen substantially since March, but at $US12,700 a tonne, the spot price is still 2½ times higher than it was in early 2002. The rise has sparked a string of mine developments in the Goldfields, particularly at Kambalda where WMC Resources has sold all but one of its former mines in the area.

Apart from Mincor's four operations, View Resources has opened the Carnilya Hill and Zone 29 mines, Australian Mines has opened the Blair mine, Independence Group is operating the Long mine, Reliance Mining is developing the Beta-Hunt mine and Titan Resources has started mining at Armstrong.

"With the increased mining activity in the region, the local labour market has simply dried up," Mincor chief executive David Moore said.

But Mr Moore said Mincor expected a big improvement from next month, when a new contractor started work at Miitel and Wannaway and an "archaic" three-shift roster was scrapped. Production would rise from 8300 tonnes this year to 15,000 tonnes in 2005 as the new Redross and Mariners mines hit full steam.

Macmahon Holdings contracting boss Nick Bowen said the shortage, amid a State-wide resources boom, was becoming critical.

"At the moment it is very hard to get people in WA for any resources project and it is particularly hard around the Goldfields - you just can't get people," he said.

Mr Bowen said Macmahon, which employs more than 600 people across WA, had been left with 35 unfilled positions at the end of May, and some advertised positions had not received a single application.

Critically, the need to meet strict performance criteria also meant companies such as Macmahon could not afford to employ inexperienced operators or commit to extensive on-the-job training, he said.

Mr Bowen said the shortage highlighted the need for greater government support for industry training programs, as well as greater incentives to encourage the unemployed to seek training and move to regions where labour was scarce.

New Titan Resources managing director Jeff Gresham said labour shortages were not having any direct impact on the company's efforts to commission the Armstrong mine near Widgiemooltha.