Wages for engineers in the mining industry rose strongly over the past 12 months, increasing between 2.6 and 2.7 per cent, according to the Association of Professional Engineers Australia (APEA).
Announced in the Professional Engineers Employment and Remuneration Report for 2020/2021, the survey found that the median base salary in the mining industry was $135,000.
The professional association stated that exports from engineering-based industries including mining totalled $249 billion or 78 per cent of total exports.
The aim of the annual survey is to report on pay and work trends in the professional engineering workforce.
As part of a longitudinal data series of more than 30 years, it provides a strong evidence-base for understanding the position of the engineering workforce and the changes to the engineering workforce over the previous and upcoming 12 months.
The survey found solid rates of accreditation in the mining industry at 37.1 per cent.
APEA stated that the ongoing design and delivery of critical infrastructure and major nation-building projects would help drive economic recovery as industries emerge from the coronavirus health emergency, as well as the drought and bushfire emergencies.
Keeping mining skills up to date will help ensure a well-trained and agile engineering workforce as the crisis subsides and governments invest in mining projects, the reported added.
Further outlined in the report, APEA stated that employers filled less than half of the mining engineer vacancies, and shortages were identified for the first time since 2013.
The association highlighted that engineers in the mining industry engaged in a greater number of hours of continuous professional development (CPD) than most of its counterparts in other industries, reporting a median of 36 hours in the previous 12 months.
Association of Professional Engineers Australia (APEA) is a division of Professionals Australia, representing more than 23,000 professionals including professional engineers, scientists, veterinarians, surveyors, architects, pharmacists, information technology professionals, managers, transport industry professionals and translators throughout Australia.