A report by Canada’s Mining Industry Human Resources Council in 2020 found that 70% of 15- to 30-year-olds would “probably or definitely not consider” working in mining. Asked about jobs in hi-tech, they were far less disaffected: only a third said they weren’t interested.

These views will hurt the sector financially. Two-thirds of mining bosses in PwC’s Annual Global CEO Survey said a skills shortage would “heavily” diminish sector profits in 10 years. “The talent shortage is becoming a nearly existential challenge,” the auditing firm said in another report, Mine 2023 (https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/energy-utilities-resources/publications/mine.html), in June...

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