Most jobs in Gladstone come from manufacturing

Manufacturing is the largest industry in the Queensland mining hotspot town of Gladstone, according to ABS statistics.

Manufacturing jobs account for 17% of all jobs in the Gladstone local government area, compared with just 3.36% for mining.

Though not strictly mining jobs, many of the manufacturing work in Gladstone stems from mining in nearby areas.

Construction is the second biggest industry, accounting for 13.8% of jobs, followed by retail at 9.48%. Next is transport, postal and warehousing at 7.71% and professional, scientific and technical services at 7.25%.

The major manufacturers in Gladstone are QAL, Rio Tinto Yarwum, Boyne Smelter and Ausproof.

Gladstone is reaping the benefits of the mining boom, says Purcell's line boring and engineering managing director Terry Purcell.

"There is heaps of mining work coming into this town – fabrication and machining," Purcell told The Gladstone Observer.

“Gladstone is traditionally an industrial city, so there is a lot of manufacturing to support that.

"We are centrally located between Surat and the Bowen basin."

He says his business manufactures new and old components primarily for the mining industry such as ruck trays.

"(Manufacturing is) to take a bit of raw material and turn it into a machine or fabricated component."

He says Gladstone’s manufacturing industry isn’t the biggest in the country but it is well placed to service mining needs.

"In the true sense of manufacturing, I think there is a lot more down in Victoria and NSW. They can get it done for cheaper because of lower wages,” Purcell says.

"There will always be a manufacturing industry here if [mining companies] can't wait and need it right now. Skilled tradespeople are hard to find."

Source: ABS

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