Karl Dyble

Hi, For someone not making a judgement, this sounds a lot like a judgement. If you don't want in that's fine but please don't put other people off with your uniformed opinions. I have already stated my reasons for proposing this information session in my original post and why there might be a cost involved. (Please read it more carefully). I also object to you insinuating that I'm trying to take people for a ride. Why would you say that and what are you basing it on? My original post was written with only the best intentions in mind for the reasons stated and I have already discussed with a mining recruitment consultant who is a friend of mine to offer practical advice to those who are struggling to get a foot in the door. What if I had proposed a BBQ for members of poms in oz to help them get to know each other and settle into Australian life, maybe show a few slides and give out some leaflets of useful information or ask a speaker or two along to give advice to make the task of assimilation into Australian society a little easier, oh and by the way there might be a small cost involved to cover venue hire and a few drinks and some of my time in arranging it? This example parallels exactly what I was proposing in my original post. Do you think people would say, why do they need to come to this event when they can find friends on this forum or people don’t need this kind of event for whatever miserable uninformed reason that they can pull out of their behind? This is my last post on the subject. If you want information about the mining industry, go and find it yourselves. If you want to throw your money away on useless courses that will get you nowhere, go right ahead, if you want to send CV after CV and get nothing and generally sit around moaning about how mining is all about what who you know and not what you know then that’s fine too. Maybe after months of frustration and getting nowhere fast you might think differently about someone who was offering a service for which there is obviously a demand (if not, why do I constantly get private messages on the subject) and the inconvenience of paying a small sum for someone to arrange it, hire a venue in which to present it and cup of tea and a bite to eat. Now I remember why I moved out of the UK. The negativity!

Hi Nepotism? In mining? This is the first I've heard of it! Only kidding. Nepotism is everywhere, just look at George W Bush and Kim Yong Un. Moving to Australia and making a new start is hard and it's even harder to do that and then move into an industry which pretty much doesn't exist in the UK. That's not to say it's impossible, I managed it. Mining is not all run by Neanderthal rock apes employing their old pal 'Chipper' because they go way back. There are things called HR departments who are pretty thorough and like to see a well presented CV with the right information on it including the applicable training and qualifications. There are also some companies who exist solely to exploit to FIFO wannabes and will offer you extremely costly and ultimately useless, when combined with no experience, training courses. There are different ways in to mining and you may need to take a less direct route etc. You said in your post that "I know a lot of people with good quals and experience in the jobs they have but still no real way into that sector, so how would doing your event make that easier or differ from doing the leg work ourselves just by knocking doors etc?" Has the 'leg work' approach worked? If not why not? Answer these questions before we discuss it any further. Cheers. Karl.

Hi Paul and Deb, in what respect do you mean what did I do? If you mean as a job, I worked as a Health and Safety Advisor and Safety Trainer for a big named mining company.

Hi northshorepom, You did ask for my view. You're right though, I am an optimist. Another of my views is that optimism leads to action, pessimism leads to inaction and you don't get squat by doing nothing. I believe that even in a flat or contracting market there are opportunities, you just have to try harder. You obviously know your stuff so I'll bow to that but the truth is that no-one knows, not even those in the know! In fact I'm reading a great psychology book at the moment and it talks about investment brokers and how all of their knowledge, experience and research into the goings on in the business world actually gave them less chance (based on previously analysed data) of making a profit on an investment than a chimp throwing darts at sealed envelopes! Let's let the chimps run the place and see how we get on. Cheers. Karl.

Hi AJ, VS and Paul and Deb That's cool, if you can get the information for free that's great. You can also get all the information you need to emigrate to Australia for free on this site yet lots of people choose to use Migration Consultants. Some people are OK with reading and piecing information together themselves and some people like to have the information presented to them. This is based on different learner characteristics and the difference between Auditory and Visual leaners. Some like to read it and some like to hear it said. As a training professional I know that there is demand for both types and as such people are free to choose the delivery medium that best suits their individual learner needs. I have already received a number of private messages expressing an interest in this information session. A point to remember too is that time is a resource and has a cost associated with it so you could spend many hours or days searching on-line for free information or you could pay someone like me a small sum, intended only to cover costs associated with venue hire, refreshments and a bit of my time, to present it to you. AJ, as for your view on people looking for FIFO work mainly being tradies, all I can say is that you must not have been on many mine sites or mining construction projects as the number of support and services staff is huge and on some projects, equal to the number of tradies. Also, who said anything about Cert IV WHS and Diploma in relation to my information session? That was a different post asking what my company offers, not what the intention of the information session was. Thanks for the replies guys and keep them coming. Karl.

Hi, mining in WA and the world over has always been boom and bust and anecdotal evidence puts a figure of about 7 years on this cycle (in WA) at least. The USA, Europe and China are key to Australian and more importantly Western Australian prosperity, the more disposable income the US and Europe have, the more Chinese produced goods and Japanese cars are bought which means more steel is required for cars, factories and machinery which in turn drives up demand for Aussie iron ore. More demand for iron ore means more mines, means more exploration, more construction and more demand for people like you and me. Why am I giving you a lesson in supply and demand, I hear you ask? Because, the USA added 192'000 jobs last month (or something like that), the UK is tipped to go beyond its growth forecast and lead European financial growth and China has surpassed its own expectations of growth by several percent. So, my view is that things look like they are on the mend and while it'll take a while for the trickle down effects to reach WA it, will happen. When? I don't know and if I did, I'd be writing this from my Mansion in Cottesloe overlooking the Indian Ocean! Add to this three more factors: 1. The world aint getting any less populated and with a house, cooker, TV and a car almost seen as basic human rights, the demand for goods and services will only rise and quickly. 2. Australia now is like the USA at the turn of the last century and anyone who thinks that a country this rich in resources, this safe, this beautiful, this inviting and so full of opportunity will stay as underpopulated as it currently is, needs to read a history book. Despite the many bumper stickers saying "f&^% Off! We're full", the population will rise and there will be a massive demand for housing and infrastructure, especially in the more sparsely populated states like errr....I don't know, Western Australia? WA is a long way from anywhere and they are not going to go overseas and import what they already have in their own back yard, which will need to be dug up, processed, and manufactured by the likes of you and me. 3. Consider WA’s competitors in the minerals game; Brazil, Nigeria, Congo and many other ‘emerging’ economies. With the greatest of respect to those countries their record on corruption, safety, human rights and environmental performance is less than perfect. China is investing massively in Africa to try and control and exploit the almost untapped natural resources but all it takes for China to lose some or all of this investment is another coup or war, which let’s face it seem to happen pretty regularly! So where would you rather invest? How about a nice safe country, with a stable political environment, near to home, good human rights conditions and environmental performance where you KNOW your investment will be guarded and no-one is going to run off to Switzerland with billions of your hard invested US dollars. I can think of somewhere…. Australia. Anyone who says the mining boom is over may well be right but mining hasn’t gone away, it’s simply normalised and is poised (in my view) for another expansion fairly soon. Once the government gets rid of the mining and resources taxes, the resources companies know where they will stand and may then be able to give the go ahead for some of the projects that are on hold. To summarise my view, as that is all that this is, don’t worry too much about a perceived ‘wind-down’ as history tells us that things will get better which is not to say that they are currently bad. My last mining job offered, 8 days on and 6 days off on a mine site for $135’000 a year with an additional 4 weeks holiday to add to the 6 days in every fortnight you already get off and the free accommodation, food, travel, clothing, Superannuation, health care, discounts and unlimited sick leave! Nowhere in the world compares to WA for conditions and pay. So don’t be concerned about what will be as no-one, not even me, can know, concentrate on what it is like now which is pretty damn good. Phew! How was that? Karl.

Hi, I'll have to be quick as I'm off to see a client. My co deals with nationally accredited Work Health and Safety (WHS) Certificate IV and Diploma but I partner with another company who can pretty much provide whatever you want. Give me a call in about 40 mins on 0400 464 883 of you want or reply with you requirements. Cheers. Karl

Hi all, I'm originally from England and have been working in FIFO (Fly In Fly Out) mining and construction pretty much since my arrival in Australia 4 years ago. I now run a successful Health & Safety Training company delivering qualifications to most industries including mining and construction in WA. I've posted a few threads on here about getting FIFO jobs and have received a healthy number of replies packed with questions. They are generally the same questions from people who know nothing about FIFO, mining or construction in WA. I don't mean that as a bad thing, I knew nothing about it when I arrived in Perth! Now I know plenty and I would like to share this information with anyone who is interested. However, to stop me from getting an RSI from typing the same thing over and over, I thought I would test the water to see if there was any appetite for Poms (that includes Scots, Welsh, Northern Irish and Irish as far as I'm concerned) to attend an information session in Perth on the subject of FIFO jobs in WA. I would cover: CV writing Aussie style Where to look for jobs Job / industry options Required qualifications Training and tickets - the do's and the definitely don't do's! Visa requirements FIFO Life (the good and the bad) Salary expectations Answer any questions and provide specific individual advice. I run a training company so imparting knowledge to people who need it, is pretty much what I do. I'll tell you now that I'm not going to do this for free as I would need to hire a venue and you would all think yourselves hard done by if there wasn't a cup of tea and a biscuit or two to be had but most importantly my time is as valuable as yours! I'm thinking of arranging it for a Saturday in Perth. Please send me a private message and depending on how many reply, I will arrange something ASAP and let you know what I'm going to charge. If you think that I'm being a bit mercenary by charging for this session just think why you are looking at FIFO as a work option in the first place..........MONEY and lots of it. In that case it's only fair that you invest in your own future by paying me to give you advice on how to achieve your goal. Not only this but by advising you on how not to waste money on training courses that won't get you anywhere, I'll be potentially saving you thousands. Sounds fair? You bet it does. Private Message me telling me who you are, where you are (suburb) and how many of you would like to attend. Cheers Karl.

Hi, yes I am a WHS professional in Perth WA, so feel free to ask me whatever you like. Check out our website too if you want, http://www.jumbosafetytraining.com.au Cheers Karl

Some hints and tips for anyone who is considering migrating as a Health and Safety professional or is currently working in that field in Australia already. The first point to note is that there is no national approach to Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) here in Australia. They recently harmonised the health and safety legislation in all of the states except Western Australia and Victoria via the introduction of the new Work Health and Safety Act 2012 (WHS Act 2012). Why didn't they adopt this in WA and Vic? The best analogy is to see WA as the USA and Vic as the UK. They have a special relationship and are often reluctant to do what everyone else is doing in Australia just as the USA does around the world and the UK does in the EU. So, this is why there is no national approach to OHS in Australia. This doesn't mean that the introduction of the new WHS Act hasn't had an impact on both WA and Vic in terms of nationally recognised Work Health and Safety courses. Why does this matter, I hear you ask. It matters because if you are considering undertaking a course of study in the field of OHS in Australia or from overseas you need to know that the old certificate IV Occupational Health and Safety and the old Diploma Occupational Health and Safety have now been superseded by the following two courses: · BSB41412 Certificate IV Work Health and Safety · BSB51312 Diploma Work Health and Safety The point of this post is to make sure that you don’t throw your money away on now defunct OHS courses. Cheers. Karl.

Hi, A good article to read: http://career-advice.careerone.com.au/resume-cover-letter/resume-writing/resume-writing-the-basics/article.aspx

Hi, I'm not a plumber, I did a bit in the UK (albeit badly) but I have worked on sites alongside plumbers when I was in construction (I now run a Safety Training company) . Plumbing is different over here, almost every trade is different over in fact. They couldn't give two s&%^s about how you did what in the UK, all they want to know is can you do it to Aussie standards? Usually this means being backed up by a qualification or three so be prepared to go back to school, regardless of how many years you've been doing it in the UK. It will be frustrating but get over it, adopt an immigrant mentality, do what you need to do to succeed. If you want to work like they do in the UK, stay there. If you want to work in Australia then you have to learn to do it their way. It's best to get this into your head early on. My suggestion would be to go in as a general labourer in construction and as soon as your employer realises that you can do more than just push a broom around they will start to give you a go at maybe some plumbing etc. You're not (or are extremely unlikely to) going to get off the plane and be offered a plumbing job with the same level of authority or remuneration as you had in the UK. The Australian construction industry philosophy is 'treat them like an imbecile until proved otherwise'. You have said that you have a friend with some contacts, good for you, milk them as much as possible but be prepared to take a less than direct path to where you want to be. You'll get there. I started as a labourer in construction in WA on mine construction projects just to get my foot in the door then moved into Health and Safety and now I have my own company teaching the Supervisors and Managers what to do. Not bad for 4 years!

Hi, I would echo the other posts and say if it's mining you're looking at specifically then there's not a lot of requirement for Carpentry. However if it's Fly In Fly Out (FIFO) that you are looking at and are attracted by the money then resource construction will be where you want to be looking. There's still plenty going on in WA and there's always a lot of movement in these jobs so construction companies are always looking for qualified and experienced employees. I don't know whether you are already in Australia or not and if so which state or if have any experience of looking for jobs but Australia is fixated by certificates and qualifications. In the UK you can pretty much do what you want as a tradesman, all you have to do is post an ad in the yellow pages and away you go. Not here, you have to have a certificate to pick your nose before anyone will give you a shot. Mining and construction are definitely the two most 'certificate crazy' industries. I should know, I run a training company aimed at the these two industries! Tell me about where you are, where you want to be, what you want and why and i maybe able to give you some more specific pointers. Karl.