According to The Morning Bulletin of Australia, prisoners across Queensland are taking courses in mining while in jail with the hope of obtaining a job in the industry once they are released. Through delivering these skills, correctional centres are aiming to help meet workforce demands in the mining industry while at the same time lessening the risk of the convicted reoffending.
Maryborough, Australia, in particular, has built a state-of-the-art immersive simulator so inmates can be given detailed knowledge of life at a mine site. Those chosen by the prisons to enter the program are usually in the final year or six months of their prison stay.
The Bulletin said that whether a person is picked depends on their record, behaviour and enthusiasm to start a new life outside the jail walls.
Prisoners will study Certificate 1 in Resources and Infrastructure Operations or Certificate 2 in Resources and Infrastructure Work Preparation. Each course is run through Tropical North Institute of TAFE in Townsville or Careers Australia.
Of the 16 who enrolled in Maryborough's first run of the nine-week course through March and April, 15 completed the course and 13 achieved Certificate 2.