Give me those 6,000 skilled workers – Rio Tinto

Mining giant Rio Tinto (LON and NYX: RIO) launched today an aggressive recruitment campaign to fill 6,000 vacancies across its 30 operations in Australia, reports ABC.

The initiative, one of the largest in the country’s history, aims to attract engineers, planners, geologists, operators, tradespeople and other workers mainly to Rio’s West Australian sites, where it already employs 10,000 people.

According to The West Australian, the company is seeking to increase Pilbara’s capacity by 50% before 2013 to 353 million tonnes a year, creating the country’s largest integrated mining project.

As part of its marketing strategy, Rio has paid Olympic athletes to pose in recruitment advertisements and has set up a mining jobs hotline at 1300 MINING.

Earlier this week, new research showed tradespeople and labourers in Western Australia were earning up to four times more than workers in other states and abroad.

Rio Tinto’s plans for substantial expansions in the Pilbara, includes the approval, earlier this year, of US$3.4 billion worth of funding for its iron ore operations.

The company’s main competitors in the Pilbara region, BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group, are also in the need for mining workers, and Rio’s new initiative is likely to spark even higher competition for employees.

To find and apply for jobs with Rio Tinto, please visit: http://www.riotinto.com/careers/18072_vacancies.asp

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