The 'R' Word

We've all heard it, The 'R' word......Recession. What does this word mean to us as resource engineers? For starters it means lower commodity prices, which means some mines which were profitable when commodity prices were good, can now now longer be sustained. For example, the mine site at which i did my first vacation work, Mt Gordon, has been significantly downsized. Because of this unsustainability, people tend to lose their jobs. Mostly the jobs that have been lost have been contractor jobs. Engineering jobs however, have tended to be quite safe, and as an engineer myself, it makes me feel a whole lot better to know that there is still a job out there somewhere for me.