Moranbah - 100% FIFO

[treehouse]

For all those concerned Moranbah investors against 100% FIFO workers - join the petition and be heard:

http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitio...fifo-and-forced-accommodation-in-mining-camps

 

[Trippy]

For all those concerned Moranbah investors against 100% FIFO workers - join the petition and be heard:

http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitio...fifo-and-forced-accommodation-in-mining-camps

Err...good luck with that.

What right do you seem to think you have to tell a business owner how to run their business?

 

[jokerjoe]

Err...good luck with that.

What right do you seem to think you have to tell a business owner how to run their business?

Err... It's called a democracy.

 

[Trippy]

Err... It's called a democracy.

Errr...so under your democracy you lobby the government to dictate to a private business how they should employee people / run their business??

What about the democratic right of the business to employee who they want / how they want

Why should you or the government structure their business model? If you want to employ local town folk in a town where you live or invest in...buy a business in town and have a crack yourself...

 

[strongy1986]

Trippy

It's called mining rights.

To receive the right you have to satisfy the governments conditions which could include environmental restrictions , minimum exploration quotas

And if lobbied maybe a certain % of non FIFO

After all the mines do use a lot of a small towns resources, including its water

 

[Trippy]

After all the mines do use a lot of a small towns resources, including its water

Seeking compensation for use of a towns resources may be applicable in some situations. That is not what the petition is based on from what I understand. Insisting they only employ residents, or a percentage or resident's seems crazy. What happens when the skilled labour is not available locally? I thought that's why they fly them in and out at great cost? If they could save this cost don't you think they would?

You may say the skilled labour can relocate...why would I sell up my nice coastal located house and relocate my family to a dust bowl with no infrastructure for maybe 6 months or a year? You may say I can rent...yeah and get gouged for the privilege of living in a dump in the middle of nowhere...No I think I would just fly in, do my job and then fly out to go HOME A lot of young guys fly in, do the work, fly to Bali for the layoff and fly back in for work. They have no fixed address as they either are at work or in Bali. You going to tell them they MUST live in town?? Doesn't seem too democratic to me

 

[dex]

For all those concerned Moranbah investors against 100% FIFO workers - join the petition and be heard:

http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitio...fifo-and-forced-accommodation-in-mining-camps

10 people have signed so far and it looks like they're all investors who bought in Moranbah but can't find tenants. The main concern seems to be vacant properties more than workers rights.

 

[depreciator]

Well spotted. I just had a look. Property investors concerned about vacancies do seem to outweigh more altruistic contributors.

 

[underdev]

FIFO miners cost significantly more that live in workers. BMA is using 100% FIFO to create a more "flexible" workforce and to negate union interference.

FIFO is not fair on the council as the mine still destroys the roads but none of the fifo miners contribute to council rates or to the local businesses the council needs to upgrade all their infrastructure to cope with the 1000's of workers tearing through the town but they contribute nothing.

Some miners such as copper chem are employing 100% local workforce as it reduces costs and makes for happier staff, Get to see the wife and kids the men are less likely to fall into temptations etc.

But hey lets support 100% FIFO, we could import our 100% FIFO work force from china. Now that would reduce costs.

 

[ww2_nut]

Isn't this one of the risks of investing in a mining town?
The petition to me just sounds like upset property investors crying about their properties being vacant.

Just my 2 cents

 

[Arnoldus]

As far as what's good for local towns with nearby mines, a happy medium between FIFO and Resident workers seems to keep things bubbling along nicely. When vacancies dropped to zero and rents got stupid in 2011/12 here in Emerald a lot of the 'locals' who rented copped it in an uncomfortable place (to put it politely), but when there's massive layoffs or the mining workforce predominately live in workers camps outside the towns it reduces services and hurts local business and the community.

Given the state controls the resource (i.e the coal) and also control the development application process, it's not outrageous to expect some meddling with conditions to expect a fix to ensure locals get a benefit. Moranbah itself exists because of the whim of Joh Bjelke Petersen. From memory the mining company wanted to just use camps, but he made them build the town from scratch.

 

[Neil Richardson]

Folks from the big cities also have to put themselves in the shoes of the small town residents and business owners.

If you owned the only shoe shop in Brisbane and most of city's population decided to fly to Melbourne to shop for shoes, you would struggle. Your family would struggle.

So just think of the locals for a minute when these issues come up and you suggest it is just greedy property owners trying to stop FIFO.

 

[dex]

If you owned the only shoe shop in Brisbane and most of city's population decided to fly to Melbourne to shop for shoes, you would struggle. Your family would struggle.

What a ridiculous example !!

 

[Neil Richardson]

Dex

Have you been to Moranbah?

 

[Trippy]

Folks from the big cities also have to put themselves in the shoes of the small town residents and business owners.

If you owned the only shoe shop in Brisbane and most of city's population decided to fly to Melbourne to shop for shoes, you would struggle. Your family would struggle.

So just think of the locals for a minute when these issues come up and you suggest it is just greedy property owners trying to stop FIFO.

Sorry Neil ...but if I was grading your response in a test situation you would get a big fat FAIL...

Try this one instead. I own the only shoe shop in Moranbah. My customers are the town folk. A mine opens just outside of town and they employee FIFO workers. My custom base hasn't changed, in fact maybe some of the miners may occasionally visit town and my trade may increase marginally when they purchase from me. If I own a coffee shop my trade may go ballistic and I need to employ more staff to cope... Please explain how a shoe shop in Brisbane is impacted by FIFO workers in Moranbah Maybe your looing at it the wrong way around ...you know, the shoe is on the other foot

I would think most businesses in a small town would financially benefit during the period when a mine is established / operating. The losers would be the investors that foolishly jumped in and have now been left high and dry in the face of paying high buy in costs with no available tenants after construction. If anyone has a case for whinging I suspect it is the investor with an empty house, rather than a business owner who would have seen trade increase during construction. I can't see how any business could be any worse off than before the mine came to town.

Just something to kick around...

 

[Trippy]

Dex

Have you been to Moranbah?

What's the point?

All the customers that did shop in Brisbane now shop in Melbourne right

 

[marg4000]

Folks from the big cities also have to put themselves in the shoes of the small town residents and business owners.

If you owned the only shoe shop in Brisbane and most of city's population decided to fly to Melbourne to shop for shoes, you would struggle. Your family would struggle.

So just think of the locals for a minute when these issues come up and you suggest it is just greedy property owners trying to stop FIFO.

But, then again, look at it from the worker's family's point of view.

Not all FIFO workers are single. Most spouses these days have jobs/careers too. Wife/husband has to chuck in job to go to remote mining town, kids have to change schools. The job may only last 1-2 years and the whole upheaval starts again.

It makes sense for the family to stay put and have spouse job/career and kids' schooling continue uninterrupted.

Yes there are downsides, but FIFO is often the preferred choice among families I know.
Marg

 

[Peter_Tersteeg]

I'm sure that if the employees want to buy or rent a house in Moranbah their employer won't stand in their way.

* The camps were created because the town didn't have the capacity for the number or workers required to build the mine.
* Given they're bringing workers in, the mine has an obligation to house those workers. This is provided via the camps.
* The workers living there know full well the living conditions. They can resign and be flown home at any time.
* Many of the workers choose to remain employed there because the are earning 2-3 times what their skill set would otherwise allow.


As for the investors in Moranbah itself, every indicator suggested that the market was in a bubble. The last property I financed in the area the borrower fully acknowledged this but felt they still had enough time to take advantage of the 15% rental yield and then get out.

The risks were very clear but people still chose to take them given the reward. People are also aware of the risks of gambling but still chose to go to the casino.

 

[Arnoldus]

I'm sure that if the employees want to buy or rent a house in Moranbah their employer won't stand in their way.

Yes, they will be out of a job in some cases if they insist on living local.

http://www.gladstoneobserver.com.au/news/mining-operations-excluding-local-jobseekers/2195492/

 

[DEC]

Err...good luck with that.

What right do you seem to think you have to tell a business owner how to run their business?

What right does a business owner have to dictate where his staff live?
What next, colour of their skin, sexual preference?

As long as the staff can perform the job to the satisfaction of the employer for a suitable rate what else is there?