New Hope Group chief executive officer Rob Bishop has joined other mining executives in raising concerns against the Federal Government’s proposed industrial relations (IR) reforms.
Such reforms include the proposed ‘Same Job, Same Pay’ Bill and the ‘Closing Loopholes’ Bill.
Off the back of New Hope announcing it had made about $1 billion in profits during the 2023 financial year, the Australian Financial Review (AFR) reported that Bishop didn’t anticipate the financial impact the reforms may have on New Hope.
As a result, the coal company is currently engaging with the Federal Government to ensure “common sense prevails”.
“We see it as quite damaging for the industry,” Bishop told the AFR. “It is a concern, and it potentially drives the wrong outcome. We certainly like to reward employees that are experienced and provide more value to the operation by virtue of their experience.”
New Hope reduced the number of labour hire workers at the Bengalla mine last year. Bengalla is a joint venture between New Hope (80 per cent) and Taipower (20 per cent) located in New South Wales.
Bengalla currently relies on labour hire groups for about 30 per cent of its workers. Bishop said this was because Bengalla was a site better suited for permanent staff.
“It tends to reduce turnover, safety metrics improve, production improves, it very much makes a big difference when you have got your own people operating,” Bishop said.
“That is not to say there isn’t a place for contractors, but we don’t see it being as high a percentage as it has been in the past.”
New Hope joins BHP, South32, the Minerals Council of Australia and the Australian Resources and Energy Employer Association (AREEA) in raising possible consequences of the IR reforms.