CARSON CITY – A report released today shows that Nevada’s mining industry has accounted for 14 percent of jobs added statewide in the past year and 33 percent of jobs added statewide since the recession ended in June 2009.
Courtesy of Barrick Gold Corp.
The Nevada Mining Association announced the findings, which come from a recent study completed by Las Vegas-based Applied Analysis.
“While accounting for just 1 percent of Nevada employment and 5 percent of Nevada GDP, the mining industry was responsible for 33 percent of the jobs added in Nevada since the end of the recession,” said Jeremy Aguero, principal analyst for Applied Analysis.
“Furthermore, these were not jobs recovered that had been lost; rather, they represented real growth,” he said. “Industry representatives have indicated that there is unfulfilled demand for even more employees to join the industry.”
The report comes out ahead of the 2013 legislative session, where any discussion of raising tax revenues will likely include the mining industry. The industry was the subject of extensive hearings in 2011. Mining was also the focus this year of an initiative petition that would have allowed higher taxes to be imposed on the industry, but the proposal was withdrawn.
The Nevada Mining Association, in announcing the study, said in a news release that mining has helped foster low unemployment rates in many rural counties, including 4.9 percent in Esmeralda County, 5.4 percent in Lander County, 5.5 percent in Elko County, 5.9 percent in Humboldt County and 5.9 percent in Eureka County.
Nevada’s statewide jobless rate was 11.8 percent in September, the highest in the nation.
The association said the industry has added 1,200 jobs over the past 12 months, which represents an 11 percent increase in mining’s total workforce, and the number of Nevadans now directly employed in mining is more than 12,000, the association said.
The association in February 2012 estimated the industry would add 1,200 jobs this year, both in precious metal and industrial mineral production, after conducting an informal survey of members.
“These numbers support what the industry has known for some time,” said Tim Crowley, president of the Nevada Mining Association. “We have been adding jobs throughout the industry, and the Nevada Mining Association is seeing a record number of outside suppliers joining our membership ranks. The industry’s direct and indirect reach will only continue to grow and help Nevada recover in the coming years with several new projects set to begin operations.”
Nevada’s gold mines produced 5.3 million ounces of gold in 2010. Nevada is ranked as the fourth largest producer in the world.
