The mining industry in Australia has hundreds of mines located in hazardous and otherwise uninhabited areas. In addition to the location, mines by nature are usually underground, arid, dark with very less ventilation and are humid. Mines are not just holes dug under the ground and in most cases have elaborate construction with heavy machinery for the initial processing of the ore that is being mined. In addition to the machinery, minerals and the infrastructure, hundreds of human beings are employed in wide array jobs working round the clock in shifts. So it is the mining industry of Australia’s Himalayan task to keep all the valuable assets, human as well as material, safe and secure. Safety advisers in mines are employed to take care of the safety of the mine and its assets.
A safety advisor is in charge of providing support, guidelines, advice on the safety of both the personnel and the infrastructure and he / she reports directly to the Manager – Mines. The Mining industry in Australia entrusts the safety advisers with a wide array of mission critical tasks. A safety advisor is required to carry out periodical risk assessments and provide appropriate guidelines on control strategies facilitating risk reduction. Coaching and mentoring the front line personnel as well as the management on the various aspects of health and safety management & OHS responsibilities. A safety advisor is expected to furnish relevant information & advice to the Mine Development department staff and workers. Preparation of monthly and quarterly safety performance reports is a part of the safety adviser’s work schedule.
In case of a mishap or accident in the mines, the safety advisor has to monitor and assist the quality department to investigate the causes, both direct and underlying, and should deploy prevention control measures in place to avoid the recurrence of the mishap. A safety advisor, in association with the management should develop procedures and systems to control identified risks. Increasing the workforce participation in risk assessment, control processes & hazard identification and development of safety and healthy procedures based on risk profiles are also the responsibilities of the mine safety advisor as defined by the mining industry in Australia. The safety advisor should participate and at times lead the audits of internal & external safety systems and should implement corrective actions in place working with the management team.
A person aspiring to become a safety advisor in the mines of Australia should have relevant experience in health, safety, risk management and allied fields. In addition to excellent verbal & written skills, the individual should have sound understanding of relevant standards, laws and codes of practice. PASS and SiteSafe system know how is also preferred in a candidate by the mining industry of Australia. The safety advisers are paid around $90000 to $120000 by the mining industry in Australia. Perks like FIFO, flying in to work for a few weeks and then flying out to take a few weeks off, health and life insurance are also part of the standard package.