Canadian mining sector saw 11,000 new jobs in 2012

Canada's mining sector, and related industries, employed 418,000 people in 2012, a dramatic increase over the previous year, according to a new report from the Mining Association of Canada.

The association used data from Natural Resources Canada to determine there were 11,000 new mining-related jobs in Canada in 2012, compared to the nearly 407,000 jobs that existed in the sector in 2011.

“This remarkable employment figure is a much more accurate view of the Canadian mining industry's role as both a major employer and economic driver in Canada," said Mining Association of Canada president and CEO, Pierre Gratton, in a release.

“It also adds to our already impressive employment figures. Not only is the mining industry the top paying industrial sector in the country, but it is also the largest private sector employer of Aboriginal people on a proportional basis and supports thousands of indirect jobs.”

The report determined employees in Canada's mining sector have the highest wages and salaries of all industrial sectors in the country, with an average pay of $1,559 a week.

Canada's mining sector contributed $52.6 billion to the national GDP in 2012 and mining industry exports accounted for $92.5 billion, or 20.4 per cent of the Canadian total, according to government data from 2012.

The value of Canadian mineral production remained elevated in 2012 at $46.9 billion and mineral exploration and deposit appraisal expenditures maintained the $3.9-billion record set in 2011.

Canada is also home to more than 3,200 companies supplying goods and services to mining operations, the report said.

“Canada's ability to attract highly-mobile global mining investment is contingent on several factors aside from commodity prices set by the global market, many of which reside within our own borders,” said Gratton.

“It is imperative that industry and Canadian governments work together to address key domestic challenges in order to support new mining growth and ensure the country remains an attractive place to mine or list.”

Despite the growth in employment for Canada's mining industry, the report said companies in the sector will need to hire 145,000 people over the next decade to replace retirees and fill new positions.