In 2004, MKO celebrated its 10-year anniversary of active operation. A vibrant birthday celebration was held in November, attended by past and present employees, contractors and friends of MKO.

MKO recognises employees that have been at the operation for a significant amount of time. The current two to three year average retention rate is very positive for a fly-in fly-out operation. The MKO 10-year club now has over a dozen members and there are now an impressive 82 employees in the rapidly growing five-year club.

Employee turnover at MKO has historically been low for a fly in fly out operation. During 2004, turnover increased as the continuing WA resources boom and associated industry shortage of skilled labour started to have a larger impact at MKO. The industry employment environment has seen significant growth in demand for skilled management, professionals and trades. Contractor roles are more sensitive to labour market changes and our turnover increase was more significant in the mining area. A managed program of retention measures during 2004 has had good success in slowing turnover rates in the latter part of 2004.

Across the site a range of initiatives are being considered to maintain Mt Keith's reputation as an attractive and rewarding place of work. MKO is participating in a company-wide review of rosters and already some non-operational roles have been adjusted to allow people to be based in Perth and come to site on a business trip basis rather than fly-in fly-out. Encouraging internal capability through effective succession planning has also been important and a good indicator of this has been the filling of 18 site roles with internal candidates.

In 2004 we introduced an Apprentice Program in association with the WA Chamber of Commerce and Industry, this has been very successful and is set to expand in the coming year. Two electrical and two mechanical apprentices are now working at MKO and another six apprentices have been recruited to commence in 2005.

Employee Development Programs

Providing opportunities to help people improve their skills and develop their careers is essential to retention. This year, all MKO managers and supervisors took part in the WMC-wide residential leadership program ‘Success Through People’.

Our Frontline Management Initiative program (FMI) has also gone from strength to strength as a key development forum for current and aspiring team leaders. All WMC and contractor employees in supervisory positions have completed at least three FMI modules with approximately 100 people as ongoing participants in 2004.

In 2004, ten MKO employees completed a Diploma of Maintenance Management offered by a nationally accredited external provider. Other key programs in 2004 included safety and compliance training and the provision of specific training tailored to development needs such as software, trades, chemical handling and mobile equipment operation.

Mt Keith Village Expansion

Phase one of a large expansion project was completed at the Mt Keith Village in 2004, with the addition of 140 new rooms. A further 150 room expansion of the village is planned to be completed in 2005. The new rooms provide a high standard of accommodation - an overall objective is to ensure all full time employees have en suite accommodation. Improvements in standards are important for the attraction of quality recruits and retention of our existing employees.

Additional drivers for this expansion include a growing number of people on-site to service the increased mining rate and an influx of drillers in support of regional exploration activities. The extra rooms will also reduce the need for people to be accommodated at Leinster during major maintenance shutdowns. This will help minimise safety risks associated with transport between Leinster and Mt Keith and improve mobilisation of shutdown personnel.

Lifestyle and the Community

We encourage family visits to the site and believe it is important for families to understand the environment in which we live and work at Mt Keith. We host six weekend visits every year, with family members staying at the Village and taking guided tours of the site. In 2004, we welcomed over 400 visitors to Mt Keith.

We also encourage our employees and contractors to unite as a community, to celebrate success, to acknowledge and share achievements and to be involved in innovation and improvement programs.

Mt Keith participates in a host of inter-site activities including Football and Basketball matches against Leinster and various sporting encounters with our counterparts at nearby Cosmos mine. The annual Mt Keith Gift, a 12km charity fundraising run continues to attract competitors from around the region.

MKO now also has a local musicians group. The Mt Keith band consists of a core group of people dedicating a few nights a week to practice and perfect their musical talents. The band regularly performs at various site functions and elsewhere in the region and is an energetic and eagerly sought after act.

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