CLANCY OVERELL | Editor | CONTACT
In a weird turn of events, it seems Western Australia is now home to their vast mining workforce that have been left stranded behind the quarantined state borders.
Even weirder, the Western Australian state government is now considering positioning itself as a place that some of these fly-in-fly-out workers might, possibly, want to live.
Unfortunately, this bold plan is not likely to be well recieved by the tax-evading multinational mining corporations that employ these workers.
As has been acknowledged since the then Federal Treasurer John Howard nearly got bashed during a union meeting in Queensland’s coal mining town of Blackwater in 1980, having miners living near mines in actual communities with their families is not ideal for the companies.
This is mainly because high-paid FIFO workers are much less likely to unionise because they don’t have their wives or husbands in their ears after work each day, telling them to demand better pay and conditions.
However, with thousands of workers from the eastern states now stuck in Western Australia, their big-money injection into the economy has got the state government licking their lips – as the housing market continues to struggle in communities that the mining corporations would prefer seen and unheard.
On Friday WA Premier Mark McGowan announced a campaign to entice out-of-state FIFO workers to relocate West permanently.
“My Government will now examine opportunities to incentivise these people to remain in Western Australia.” said McGowan, who is now polling at 89% for preferred leader of the state.
It is perhaps his astronomically high approval rating that has given the Premier the confidence to confront the lawless mining corporations and begin discussions about utilising some of the states derelict mining towns as places for workers to actually live, instead of just Outback meth labs.
Although it seems his bold plan might result in the mining bosses going over his head to their employees in the Federal Government.
“Absolutely terrible idea” said one multi-millionaire mining lobbyist and prominent Liberal Party donor, Saul Lesskunt.
“You are telling me that the Premier actually wants mining employees to form communities and live within a morning commute of their workplace”
“Gina won’t have a bar of this. No way”
“What’s next? They are gonna ask us to chip in and build a school for their kids? A proper hospital. Haha. This is absolutely laughable.
Mark McGowan says while he realises this won’t be an easy fight, it’s got to be better than the current system that has resulted in an epidemic of mental illness for the breadwinners of thousands of Australian families who spend half of every month living away from home in demountable accommodation where they sleep in ‘hotbeds’ that they share in shifts.
“Just an idea” said the Premier.
“Maybe we don’t need 40 flights coming into Kalgoorlie each week.”
“You know, maybe, people could actually live in Kalgoorlie”
“With their families maybe”
