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Almost 130 jobs have been scrapped by the shutdown of a north Queensland mine, with workers claiming they were left in the dark.
Key points:
- The mine employed about 130 people
- Administrators have halted operations and will consider selling the mine
- The mine experienced an underground collapse in August
Cromarty Resources' Thalanga Mine, about 65 kilometres west of Charters Towers, went into administration last week.
Operations at the zinc, copper and lead mine have ceased, and workers were told at a meeting on Monday that they had lost their jobs.
Mechanical fitter leading hand Scott Durack, who had worked at the mine for more than two years, said the situation was "gut-wrenching".
"I've got five kids. My wife's a nurse, and now she's going to have to flog herself just to try and keep us going," he said.
Operations at the mine were shut down for more than two weeks in August after a "fall of ground" event in an underground mine.
Cromarty's parent company, Red River Resources, said an operator working in the area was discharged with no serious injuries, but production at the mine slowed significantly.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the administrators, FTI Consulting, said they were investigating the reasons for the mine's failure.
"Once the administrators were appointed to Cromarty Resources, it was determined the most appropriate action was to move operations into Care & Maintenance (C&M)," the spokesperson said.
"The owner of the mine has previously reported the mine headcount was 130 people, with around 63 being direct employees and the remainder being contractors.
"Unfortunately, as a result of the move to C&M the majority of direct employees will be let go, and impacted staff have now been informed."
The spokesperson said FTI Consulting was reviewing the options for the Thalanga mine going forward, which will likely include considering a sale process.
Boilermaker Ryan Enright said he was now "trying to scramble cash work together" to make ends meet after losing his job.
"We saw the writing on the wall a few months back, and we asked the local management … and we were assured that things were on the mend and they didn't want anyone to leave site to look for other jobs," Mr Enright said.
"As everyone's aware, all the pricing on general living has skyrocketed. It's definitely a tough time of year with no income."
Member for Kennedy Bob Katter also attended the meeting between the company and workers this week.
"It was a very depressing day … there was a lot of anger," he said.
The Katter's Australian Party MP said the company had recently guaranteed workers they would be employed for at least another six months.
"Some of them purchased houses, others made arrangements to move to Charters Towers on the assurance they were given," he said.
"It's a huge blow to the economy of not only Charters Towers but north Queensland."