Rio Tinto: Challenges and Strategies in Recruitment and Selection

This report provides an overview of the recruitment and selection challenges faced by Rio Tinto, a major player in the mining industry, particularly in Australia. It begins by defining recruitment and selection processes and then delves into key challenges such as attracting new entrants, skilled ...Read More

RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION
RIO TINTO

Executive summary:
Human resource management is the concept that discusses about various functions. One of the
functions is recruitment and selection that plays a very important part in the company’s
operations. This is because these are the functions that deal with selection and recruitment of the
employees. Most of the industries these days are facing some of the challenges in selecting and
attracting the employees towards their industry and thus organization are taking many initiatives
by implementing the strategies and improving their work environment so that they can develop
the capability to attract and retain the workforce in their companies.
Table of Contents

Introduction:...............................................................................................................................................1
What is recruitment and selection?............................................................................................................1
Key challenges:............................................................................................................................................2
Strategies to face the challenges:................................................................................................................3
Conclusion:..................................................................................................................................................5
References:..................................................................................................................................................5

Introduction:
This report aims at discussing the recruitment and selection challenges that has been faced by the
mining industry in Australia. The company that has been selected to conduct the study is Rio
Tinto. The report structures goes on with the discussion of the basic of recruitment and selection
process along with the discussion of challenges that company like Rio is facing in recruitment
section. It also focuses on the information about the recommended strategies that can be used by
the company in order to face such challenges (Armstrong & Taylor, 2014).
It is the company that operates in the mines industry and is headquartered at London. The
company’s 61% operations are there in Australia. Its mines are located at different countries such
as Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand, Indonesia etc. it has been analysed that the company and
the mining industry in Australia is facing some issues in terms or recruiting the employees.
What is recruitment and selection?
Recruitment is the process that allows the organizations to attract the candidates in order to pride
them the jobs. This is the processes by which the company post the job vacancy ads and the
candidates who have the relevant profile apply for the same. Selection on the other hand is
considered as the negative process in which the most relevant candidates or the applicants are
selected and others are rejected on the basis of the requirements of the job. In the mining industry
of Australia, these processes are facing challenges because of the various reasons such as
changes in demography, labour relations, unskilled workforce etc. (Boxall & Purcell, 2011).
Some of the key challenges faced by Rio Tinto in its recruitment and selection are being
discussed below:
Key challenges:
Attracting new entrants: It is always the challenge for the company in mining industry to attract
new talents to the industry. This is because the employees in this industry have to work war from
home in the mines which is even riskier than the other jobs. Even though this industry offers high
salaries to the people but it becomes difficult to convince the people to work in such harsh
conditions (Bratton & Gold, 2012).

Skilled labour shortage: it has been analysed that in Australia, the skilled labour that works with
the mining industry are retiring and now the time has come when there is required to develop the
skilled labour in this industry. This all develops a challenge for the company to recruit the skilled
labour (Chelladurai & Kerwin, 2017). Mining is a very technical industry and thus require skilled
and knowledgeable workforce to work in it. Rio Tinto is facing this issue since years and they
are not getting the skilled workers to work in their mines.
Labour supply and demand: this is also one of the major challenges that have been faced by the
company like Rio Tinto. As per the above point, it has been analysed that the demand for labour
is large in the mining industry but the supply is not that perfect to fill the vacancies. This is
because the people are finding the other jobs more interesting (Chaneta, 2014). Labour that is
available in the market are looking for the job that provide them more facilities and flexibility
and this is the main reason why labour supply is low in comparison to the demands of the labour
in the mining industry.
Demographic issues: Demographic changes are the changes that are related to age, culture,
custom, diversity etc. all these factors act as the big restricts in front of the company to recruit
the employees. Gender discrimination, Workforce diversity and similar there concepts generated
in the organizations because of the variation in the demography. It has been analysed that Rio
Tinto is also facing the same issues (McGraw, 2011). Mining is the industry that prefers to
recruit the make work force and thus female workforce fails to enter the industry. As discussed
earlier that mining industry also prefers to recruit the young people and thus it is difficult for the
older people to get the jobs (Shackleton, 2015). Because of the male domination in the industry
even the female workers skilled in the field fails to apply for the jobs. Change in climate is also a
great factor. Mining is the industry that may develop some kind of issues related to heath making
the employees working under mines at different climate. This restricts the workers to join the
industry.
Outsourcing companies: here are many outsourcing companies that have developed in the market
these days. These companies hire most of the workforce in their companies and thus leave the
market vacant (Treweek, et al. 2010). This result is issues of recruitment at the industries which
are already facing challenges.

Training and development: It has been analysed that mining industry is observed to be the
industry that does not provide growth to the employees. It has been analysed that the industry
require the trained workforce and does not have training sessions or facilities for the employees.
This makes it even difficult for the company like Rio Tinto to find the people who are skilled and
trained.
Expatriate culture differences: it has been analysed that as Australia is suffering from shortage of
skilled workers in the country in mining sector thus they have to call for expatriate from the
other countries to train the employees (Torkington, Larkins & Gupta, 2011). The change in
culture and language becomes another reason that cat as the challenges for the company. Rio
Tinto is facing the challenge of maintain the balance between the culture diversity among the
expatriates and the employees. This results in employee turnover because of issue in training.
Strategies to face the challenges:
Development of proper training and development department:
It is the most important requirements for the company. Rio Tinto should develop a department
that would be responsible for training all the employees who works for them is required in order
to provide those skills that are required by the workers in mines. On the job training is the best
way to provide training to the employees.
Developing workplace environment:
It is required by the company to develop and improve the workplace environment. This is
because mining is the field that may be subjected to may accidental issues at the site. Providing
proper training about the safety measures and the risk prone activities provide a better and safe
workplace environment for the workers to work (Millward, Stephenson, Rio & Anderson, 2011).
Compensation facilities:
As discussed that the industry requires the people to work in some unfavourable situations in the
mines, thus it is required by the company to compensate them in case of any emergency of mis-
happening with them (Tonts, 2010). The company should also implement some of the strategies

that support the families of the employees so that people can come and do jobs away from the
cities as well. This will helps in attracting the new talents towards the industry.
Better recruitment strategies:
It has been analysed that Rio Tinto is not making so much efforts in attracting the employees. It
is requires to being changes in the recruitment strategies of the company so that it attract more
and more people to apply for the vacancies (Connolly & Orsmond, 2011). Posting the jobs on the
online portal is one of the techniques that need to be applied by the company in order to attract
the skilled workers. Hiring the outsourcing companies for recruitment is another best option to
be used.
Retaining the millennial:
It is also required by the company to retain the millennial in the firm. This is because they are the
one who can provide trainings to the employees. As per the analysis, it has been analysed that
most of the skilled employees working in the industry are at the verge of their retirement. Thus,
to prepare the new generation for the mining skills it is requited to retain some of the employees
who have the experience of the relevant industry so that they can act as the trainers for the new
employees and workers.
Motivational factors:
Motivation is the basic requirement to improve the work efficiency and to retain the employees.
Mining industry and the companies like Rio are already facing high turnover of the employees
(Battellino, 2010). This suggests that it is required to provide some motivation to the employees
that force them to retain with the company and work. Motivational factors such as employee
engagement, other perks and benefits, performance appraisal etc. should be introduced in the HR
policies that the employees feel motivated and wants to work with the company.
International hiring:
It is also one of the strategies that can be used by the company in order to fill the vacant positions
of the company in mining sector. China is the country that is providing cheap labour for the

company (Fleming & Measham, 2014). Rio is trying to start its operation in other countries as
well so that they can have cheap and skilled labour to work for them.
Conclusion:
The report concludes that recruitment is the process of attracting the candidates and selection is
the process of rejecting the candidates and selecting the candidates having the relevant profile as
per the job requirements. The industry that has been discussed in the report is mining industry
that is facing some of the major issues in the recruitment and selection process in Australia. The
major challenge faced by the industry and the company like Rio Tinto is unskilled labour. It is
required by the company to implement some strategies that can improve the recruitment and
selection processes.

References:
Armstrong, M., & Taylor, S. (2014). Armstrong's handbook of human resource management
practice. Kogan Page Publishers.
Battellino, R. (2010). Mining booms and the Australian economy. RBA Bulletin, March, 63-69.
Boxall, P., & Purcell, J. (2011). Strategy and human resource management. Palgrave Macmillan.
Bratton, J., & Gold, J. (2012). Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave
Macmillan.
Chaneta, I. (2014). Recruitment and Selection. International Journal of Management, IT and
Engineering, 4(2), 289.
Chelladurai, P., & Kerwin, S. (2017). Human resource management in sport and recreation.
Human Kinetics.
Connolly, E., & Orsmond, D. (2011). The mining industry: from bust to boom. Economic
Analysis Department, Reserve Bank of Australia.
Fleming, D. A., & Measham, T. G. (2014). Local job multipliers of mining. Resources
Policy, 41, 9-15.
McGraw, P. (2011). Recruitment and Selection'. Australian Master Human Resource Guide,
217-234.
Millward, P., Stephenson, M. S., Rio, N., & Anderson, H. (2011). Voices from Manukau:
recruitment and success of traditionally under represented undergraduate groups in New
Zealand. Asia Pacific Education Review, 12(2), 279-287.
Shackleton, V. (2015). Recruitment and Selection. Elements of Applied Psychology, 153.
Tonts, M. (2010). Labour market dynamics in resource dependent regions: an examination of the
Western Australian goldfields. Geographical Research, 48(2), 148-165.

Torkington, A. M., Larkins, S., & Gupta, T. S. (2011). The psychosocial impacts of fly‐in fly‐out
and drive‐in drive‐out mining on mining employees: A qualitative study. Australian
Journal of Rural Health, 19(3), 135-141.
Treweek, S., Mitchell, E., Pitkethly, M., Cook, J., Kjeldstrøm, M., Johansen, M., ... & Jones, R.
(2010). Strategies to improve recruitment to randomised controlled trials. Cochrane
Database Syst Rev, 4(4).