THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON EMPLOYMENT IN MINING

The document highlights the vulnerability of the global mining labour market during the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that up to 305 million workers across all sectors were at risk of job loss in Q2 2020. It emphasizes that large-scale mining is often the primary job creator in remote regions and can contribute up to 15% of a country's national income. The brief argues for targeted relief packages conditional on job retention, the inclusion of non-permanent and migrant workers in social protection schemes, and the retraining of displaced workers to build future resilience. It also calls for strengthening local supply chains and industrial bases to reduce dependency on a few emerging markets.

• Large-scale mining is critical for remote regions where other economic sectors are scarce, serving as the primary or sole provider of jobs and social services, and contributing as much as 15% of a country's national income through direct, indirect, and induced employment.
• Government relief for mining companies and suppliers should be conditional on the retention of salaries and jobs, and must specifically include non-permanent staff, such as contractual and migrant workers, in social protection schemes.
• To build long-term resilience against future crises, the document recommends retraining and upskilling workers displaced by COVID-19, conducting occupational risk analyses to forecast relief needs, and increasing R&D for digital solutions for local businesses.
• Governments should support the industrial base to allow local businesses to increase their share of mining procurement and develop strategic regional value chains to decrease dependency on a small number of emerging markets.

APA

Ramdoo, I. (2020). THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON EMPLOYMENT IN MINING. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/covid-19-employment-mining-key-points-en.pdf

Chicago

Ramdoo, Isabelle. THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON EMPLOYMENT IN MINING. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2020. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/covid-19-employment-mining-key-points-en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ramdoo |first1=Isabelle |title=THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON EMPLOYMENT IN MINING |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=June 2020 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/covid-19-employment-mining-key-points-en.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ramdoo2020impact, author = {Ramdoo, Isabelle}, title = {{THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON EMPLOYMENT IN MINING}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2020}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/covid-19-employment-mining-key-points-en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }