Bowen Basin coal price boom producing $100k jobs, $10k signing bonuses

No experience? No problem. There are plenty of jobs on offer in Queensland’s coalfields for skilled and unskilled workers alike on the back of a stunning rise in coal prices. Find out how much you could make.

Workers across Mackay and Central Queensland are in the box seat to nab incredible wages as coal prices continue to boom upwards of more than $500 per tonne.

In just the past seven days, Seek has listed 134 full-time jobs paying between $100,000 and $200,000 for Mackay and the Coalfields as Bowen Basin producers spray cash around to lock in desperately-needed labour.

Dump truck operators through Workpac can expect to earn $53.16 per hour on a casual contract and $51.10 for a permanent position.

Chandler Macleod is offering $56.53 an hour for experienced multiskilled operators.

Mining salaries are booming across the Bowen Basin, for skilled and unskilled workers alike. This photo shows a dump truck at the Caval Ridge Mine near Moranbah. Picture: Lee Constable

Signing bonuses are also ramping up, with mining services firm Thiess promising a $10,000 sign-on bonus for workers who join the company and a $5000 bonus for a successful referral.

Mining giants Bravus, BHP and Anglo American are all putting the call out for miners.

The gold rush is also open to unskilled workers.

Trainee tyre fitters with Otraco, for example, can expect to book a starting salary between $75,000 and $85,000 as well as superannuation and benefits.

Other impressive conditions alongside the fat pay packets include seven days on, seven days off rosters and fully-funded fly-in fly-out arrangements.

However, not all positions boast these perks.

The advertised wages look to add to mining’s crown as the highest paid sector in the country.

Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane says there are currently more than 1800 Queensland resources jobs advertised on Seek, with about 85 per cent paying more than $100,000 per year.

Across Queensland, ABS data shows average weekly earnings for full-time workers for the period ending November 2021 was $1671.40.

In mining, average weekly earnings are pegged at $2656.30.

Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane expects jobs growth to continue for the next three years “because of increasing demand for Queensland commodities”.

“That’s the key – the raw materials we produce here in Queensland are essential to making electric cars, wind turbines, solar panels, smart phones, batteries and every other modern convenience or technology you can think of.

“Southeast Asian demand for Queensland commodities is particularly strong and increasing and the flow-on effect is a growing and increasingly diverse pipeline of jobs for Queenslanders.”

Mr Macfarlane adds Asian demand for Queensland commodities will likely extend jobs growth in the Bowen Basin.

Mr Macfarlane cautioned though, noting the sector’s rising wages contained risks.

“Labour costs are roughly 30 to 40 per cent of a mining operations’ costs in Australia, so rising wages are definitely a concern for QRC members,” he said.

“The good news is the record prices we’ve recently experienced for nearly every Queensland resource export has been providing strong margins, but the problem is no-one expects these prices to remain at these levels in the long-term.

“The concern is that costs like wages are ‘sticky’ and tend to fall much slower than prices, so wage costs could be a major issue looking forward if we experience a commodity price downturn.”