166 Mines in 41 States Respond to the 2018 InfoMine USA Survey
InfoMine USA, Inc’s yearly mining industry survey is designed to establish benchmarks for estimating the cost of labor for new mining projects and provide insight for employee retention with competitive wage and benefit packages.
Personnel managers from 166 active mining operations responded to the survey between July and December 2018, according to the executive summary at mining.com. Contributing mining sectors include:
- U.S. metal
- Industrial mineral
- Aggregates
- Coal
Mining Sector Wage Increases and Bonuses
The full 207-page InfoMines USA report includes wages, salaries, benefit plans, and employment tax data from 43 metal mines, 45 coal mines, and 78 mineral/aggregate mines.
For the mining industry overall, wages have increased across the board at an average of 2.4%, ranging between 1.5% to 5%. There were no wage decreases at any of the mines surveyed over the past 12 months.
Seventy-two mines experienced no change at all in wages, but 80 provided opportunities for extra wage income with incentive bonus plans.
Popular Bonus Plans
Exceptional safety on the job was one of the most frequently awarded incentive bonuses, issued as the reward for accident-free performance over a set period of time.
Other effective motivational performance incentives include:
- Rewards for demonstrated improvement over historical operational averages
- Production incentives in the form of fixed awards per ton of ore produced
- Safety achievement bonuses when no lost-time accidents have occurred.
- Outstanding employee attendance records
Hourly Benchmarks For Skilled Mining Labor
In the skilled labor category, electricians in metal and coal surface mines had the highest hourly wages averaging $32.78 and $32.64 respectively. At the lowest end of the hourly wage spectrum, underground laborers in industrial mineral and aggregate mines were still able to rake in an average $20.31 per hour.
Miners, equipment operators, mechanics, and production truck drivers all fell within a tight hourly range between $26.28 and $30.16 per hour.
Lucrative Careers For Mining Professionals at Resource Erectors
Administrative, technical, and managerial personnel salaries were reported by 122 mines including 28 underground and 94 surface operations. Classified by job titles, the survey respondents ranged in operational capacity from less than 100,000 to over 5,000,000 tons produced annually.
Higher level management titles such as general managers, mine managers, and mine superintendents all averaged six-figure salaries ranging between $109,700 to $191,400. Mine geologists, foremen, and engineers averaged between $83,900 and $92,300 yearly and six-figure incomes in excess of $150,000 are certainly achievable in those valuable up-skilled positions.
As smart-age innovations such as digitization and automation transform the industry, mining management professionals will need to meet the challenge of a “reimagined” workforce. While the generational shift from an aging workforce continues mine operators will need to tailor their workplaces to attract a wide range of technical and professional talent to mining-related disciplines.
In fact, according to a recent Deloitte Global Mining report, collaboration with educational institutions, and the implementation of diversity, inclusion, and more flexible workplace programs will be crucial to an industry dealing with ever-increasing demands in an age of increased consumer scrutiny.
Resource Erectors has established itself as the go-to recruiting resource for the industry-leading mining companies all across North America. We specialize in connecting the most qualified and motivated mining professionals with the top mining companies who need their talents. We cover the full range of all mining sectors including aggregates, underground mining production, surface operations, tunneling, and silica sand mining and processing.
Our company also recruits the top operations and management professionals for civil construction, manufacturing, engineering, logistics and supply chain, and safety and environmental positions.
If you’re looking for the best professional candidates in your industrial sector or are a highly qualified professional ready to make a career move, you’re ready for Resource Erectors! Don’t hesitate to contact us.
