9 minute read
CostMine’s analysis of how mining salaries compare in Canada and the U.S
Salaries Exchange rates continue to impact mining
Strength of US dollar puts American workers at advantage
By Krista Noyes
Employment in the mining industry is highly specialized and as a result, retaining skilled staff is challenging. These employees are often the most valuable asset at a mine and can run anywhere from 25% to 50% of the daily operating costs.
One of the top reasons that employees leave for greener pastures is how much they are paid. Individuals such as geologists, engineers and top line supervisors are in demand and can often find new opportunities fairly quickly. Mines compete for these specialized employees, often recruiting from other countries. As a result, the mining workforce is highly mobile.
According to CostMine’s 2019 mine
58 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL survey results of U.S. and Canadian mines, employees at Canadian mines received a 2 to 4% salary increase for the year, while their U.S. counterparts reported an average increase of 2.7%. These statistics are derived from the results of two surveys completed last year by CostMine.
Taking a longer view, we analyzed the salaries for Canadian and U.S. mine superintendents and mine geologists over the last ten years derived from our previous surveys. The charts below show the average annual salaries for these selected titles at metal mines in Canada and the U.S., over the period from 2009 to 2019. In 2009, the salaries were very similar for these professionals between the two countries. It is clear from the charts, that beginning in 2011, U.S. salaries for these titles lagged behind their Canadian counterparts. Our studies show that while salaries expressed in their own currencies have steadily increased over time, once the exchange rate between the two countries is factored in, the salaries for Canadian mine superintendents and geologists falls far short of their U.S. counterparts beginning in 2015. As shown below, the strengthening U.S. dollar shows the impact on Canadian salaries when expressed in U.S. dollars. Over the ten year period from 2010 to 2019, salaries for mine superintendents
Mine Superintendent
180,000 160,000 140,000 120,000 100,000 80,000 60,000 40,000 20,000 0 1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
2 0 0 9 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 1 2 0 1 2 2 0 1 3 2 0 1 4 2 0 1 5 2 0 1 6 2 0 1 7 2 0 1 8 2 0 1 9 0
USA (US$) Canada (US$) Canada (CAD$) Oanda Historical Conversion 1CAD=
Mine Geologist
180,000 160,000 140,000 120,000 100,000 80,000 60,000 40,000 20,000 10,000 0 Annual Salary
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
2 0 0 9 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 1 2 0 1 2 2 0 1 3 2 0 1 4 2 0 1 5 2 0 1 6 2 0 1 7 2 0 1 8 2 0 1 9 0
USA (US$) Canada (US$) Canada (CAD$) Oanda Historical Conversion 1CAD=
have increased by 21% in the U.S., and 23% in Canada. Though, for Canadian mine superintendents, when you factor in the exchange rate their salary is 5% less than in 2010, when expressed in USD.
Salaries for mine geologists show a similar trend over the last ten years, with the exception of a slight downturn for U.S. geologists in 2019. Even with the decline in 2019, a geologist in the U.S. enjoyed a 25% increase over the last ten years, while Canadians saw a 21% increase. However, as with mine superintendents, when you factor in the exchange rate, Canadian geologists are making almost 7% less than they were in 2010 in USD equivalents.
But are Canadians in the mining industry keeping up with inflation? According to Statistics Canada, inflation increased by 16.7% from 2010 to 2019, while mining wages increased an average of 21%.
So while Canadians may be at a disadvantage compared to their American counterparts, within Canada, wages continue to grow at a pace greater than inflation. CMJ
n Krista Noyes is a cost analyst/geologist with CostMine (www.costmine.com), publisher of Mining Cost Service and part of the Glacier Resource Innovation Group, based in Spokane, Wash. She can be reached at knoyes@glacierrig.com. n CostMine conducts annual surveys of compensation practices at U.S. and Canadian mines. Complete survey reports – including actual wage and salary scales, benefit plan profiles and bonus plans for Canadian mines, and US mines can be purchased from CostMine. Details are available at www.costmine.com or by calling +1-509-328-8023.
25.0 20.0 15.0 10.0 5.0 0.0 -5.0 -10.0 20.6 23.0
-5.4
10 Year Change ■ Mine Superintendent % Change (US$) ■ Mine Superintendent % Change (CAD$) ■ Mine Superintendent % Change (US$ Equivalent)
Mine Geologist Salaries – % Change over 10 Years
25.0 20.0 15.0 10.0 5.0 0.0 -5.0 -10.0 25.1
21.3
-6.8 10 Year Change ■ Mine Geologist% Change (US$) ■ Mine Superintendent % Change (CAD$) ■ Mine Superintendent % Change (US$ Equivalent)
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Transparency and openness with local community stakeholders with regards to how the mine owner plans to minimize the impact of operations on the environment and discussions relating to land reclamation and mine closure plans go a long way to building a relationship based on community engagement and trust.
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Diversity and inclusion has always been a part of how mining had to work. The labels and tools have become more sophisticated, we’ve become more proactive at it – but you can’t survive as a mine if that’s not a vital part of the program.
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Sari Muinonen: As an industry, we should increase our effort in communicating our significant role in society. We should continue to communicate the importance of mining beyond jobs and economy and how our products/commodities are used in everyday life and for the benefit of modern society.
For example, there are more than 300,000 applications of nickel, and they all contribute to innovation and sustainability in our daily lives. Nickel is used for mobile phones, computers, and rechargeable batteries that power up these mobile devices; it is essential to the health industry for making better surgical tools and medical equipment. Nickel and nickel alloys are found in aircraft, subways and trains, and in components of wind turbines, fuel cells, solar power and other green energy resources. CMJ
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