THE LABOR MARKET FOR A MINING ENGINEER: A SURVEY OF FORMALLY HIRED EMPLOYEES IN BRAZIL

Abstract

The number of Mining Engineering courses has increased in Brazil since 2004, resulting in a significant rise in the number of graduates. However, such growth was not followed by an equivalent rise in the number of applications for professional registration as a Mining Engineer with the Regional Engineering Councils, which might indicate a shortage of professional opportunities in the marketplace. This paper addresses the current labor market scenario for mining engineers in Brazil, taking sources of formal employment data as a basis: the Labor Ministry’s CAGED and RAIS employee data systems. It was found that there has been a significant asymmetry between the number of graduates and the number of mining engineers formally registered in the country in recent years. Moreover, the number of mining engineers’ dismissals exceeds the hiring figures as of 2012, in contrast with the previous expansion forecasts in this industry, elaborated in 2010 and 2014, based on which new Mining Engineering courses had been opened.

Keywords

• mining engineering
• labor market
• formal employment