A job fair for companies that provide supply and service to the mining sector was held in the main foyer at Tom Davies Square today, from 9 am to 3 pm.
“There's not many people that we're not looking for to fill a need here in the north.” said Dan Newell, international consultant for Levert Personnel Inc.
Overall, 29 companies were in attendance and were looking for a wide variety of positions, from office staff to skilled tradespeople.
In northeastern Ontario there are almost 17,000 jobs in supply and service to the mining sector,” said Sharon Murdock, executive director for Sudbury and Manitoulin Workforce Partnerships Board.
As well as possibly finding employment, attendees were given the opportunity to hear employers speak about industry trends and provide information about themselves, as well as answer questions.
“Last year we had 400 (people) show up and I think by now we've had at least that and we're only half way through the day.
Vale Inco and Xstrata were also on hand, though Murdock stated that the bulk of the jobs are in the smaller supply and service companies.
“That's the area that people should be looking at, that' the area where people can gain experience,” said Murdock. She said that the salaries at these smaller supply and service companies are actually quite comparable to the mining companies.
Job growth in the mining industry is expected to continue well into next year.
“If you add up all of the announcements that have been made by the different mining companies in the area, you have at least 1,000 there, and three jobs for every mining job... I would say that we are booming,” said Murdock.
“It's the industry itself, it's a booming industry so we need people to do the work, we need people to be supervisors, to be labourers,” said Leigh-Ann Knight, Xstrata Nickel. “The industry is doing very well right now.”
