In most cases mine villages are a community within themselves, this means from time to time they will have electrical and plumbing issues, etc. Because the villages are usually well equipped, they cannot simply have a contractor sitting around waiting for something to go wrong. It is in these instances that an outside contractor is employed to fix things as necessary. For people looking to work within the mining industry using their own current skills, this can be a good option.
The key to being successful in this field is good workmanship, fair rates, speedy service and most importantly, excellent feedback and word of mouth recommendations. Mining is an incredibly fast-paced industry; if something is broken it needs to get fixed to a high standard and in a timely manner. Many mining companies employ contractors directly to the site because they are very limited with the services they have available, simply because of the remoteness of the site.
FIFO and DIDO sites will generally pay for accommodation, travel and meal expenses for any work they require from an outside contractor. Although taking this road could perhaps be rather long-winded, it, like anything done properly with the correct business planning techniques put in place, can prove to be a very profitable venture. The best first step would be to ensure you have the appropriate licences / certificates in your field. Then start looking at specific locations you are interested in and at the other contractors in your field who currently service that area. This will give you a good indication of where your services would be best suited (for example, if one mine site has one local electrician and another has five, you would be better off at the site where there is only one).
With all the safety regulations now in place, there are a number of jobs that have been created simply to comply with state and national regulations. For example, all electrical plugs on mine sites are required to be tested for any faults on a yearly basis, and some more often that that.
For all contractor roles it is essential to have the standard police clearance (clean alcohol and drug screening, and a medical) in place. And as with all roles, rosters differ from site to site. It is important to note that while many of these roles at first glance pay a similar hourly rate to the same job in a city, you will be required to work extra hours from the standard 40 day week, which of course works to dramatically increase your annual earnings. Add on to that all your accommodation and meals being paid for while on-site and it makes working on a mine site a lot more attractive than taking the same role in the city.
