The editorial traffic light of this newspaper on September 15 turned on a red light on mining employment: nine out of ten workers, according to a Manpower study, are considering changing jobs. The figure deserves attention. But it does not follow that nine out of ten want to abandon mining. Changing employers and leaving an activity are very different decisions.
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The editorial traffic light of this newspaper on September 15 turned on a red light on mining employment: nine out of ten workers, according to a Manpower study, are considering changing jobs. The figure deserves attention. But it does not follow that nine out of ten want to abandon mining. Changing employers and leaving an activity are very different decisions.
It’s understandable that a company would see a red flag when so many workers are considering other opportunities. You also need to read the rest of the results. According to the figures collected in the study, 82% of those surveyed are satisfied with the benefits they receive and 62% with their remuneration. These percentages do not describe a sector without problems; nor do they allow us to conclude that discontent is generalized.
Mining competes for technicians and professionals with other companies in the country and abroad. A worker who hears an offer can look for a better salary, a different project or an opportunity for growth without denying his profession. Labor mobility reflects, in part, the value that Peruvian mining talent has achieved. To know how much each reason weighs, more precise questions are needed, not an automatic interpretation of a single figure.
The editorial note proposes improving salaries, safety, well-being and professional development. They are valid objectives for any activity, and mining companies have the obligation to continue advancing in all of them. But it is advisable to avoid the leap of stating, based on a survey on willingness to change jobs, that these four areas necessarily present a general failure. The data on satisfaction with benefits forces us to qualify the diagnosis.
Those of us who know mining know that it offers good opportunities and also imposes personal costs. They sometimes work in remote areas, above 4,000 meters of altitude, with shifts that separate many workers from their families for weeks. No remuneration alone eliminates this wear and tear. Retaining talent requires listening to people, reviewing shifts when possible, taking care of safety and offering real prospects for learning and promotion.
There is also a task that looks beyond the company: training more young people so that they can access quality mining jobs. That Peruvian professionals are sought after in other countries should stimulate greater investment in technical education and training. It is not about ignoring the competition for talent, but about responding to it by creating more opportunities.
The red light is useful if it invites action on well-identified problems. If you confuse interest in changing jobs with a massive flight from the sector, it can lead to the wrong diagnosis. Let’s listen to the signal, examine its causes and also recognize good news: Peruvian mining talent is in demand. The challenge is to offer you enough reasons to develop here.
