They argue that instead of expanding its presence in premium metallurgical coal destinations such as India, Australia is slipping backwards and watching rivals step in.
Industry leaders describe this as a self inflicted wound driven by domestic policy, not global market weakness.
Industry body Minerals Council of Australia links the slide to the Albanese government’s workplace reforms and state tax settings that it says undermine investment confidence. A central flashpoint is Queensland’s steep coal royalties structure, criticised by producers as extreme and unpredictable.
The MCA highlights Canberra backed “same job, same pay” rules, which force parity between labour hire and directly employed workers across specific sites. According to the council, the combination of federal industrial relations changes and Queensland’s royalties regime is discouraging new hiring and constraining output across the state’s coal sector.
Fresh MCA analysis indicates Queensland mines hit by those “same job, same pay” rulings are now employing around 20% fewer workers than comparable operations. The study draws on Resources Safety and Health Queensland data spanning 29 coal mines across the state.
Eight of those mines are covered by the parity pay orders and show notably weaker workforce numbers. Fewer employees on site translate into reduced production capacity, which the MCA says flows through to slower export growth and lower contributions to the broader Australian economy.
