Swann is committed to building as much knowledge as possible for the shared benefit of those in the industry here in China. The CIMG and the Mining Journal CHINA are happy to support  these exercises.

The report of first survey in 2006 of salaries in China's international mining community proved to be a useful benchmarking of the industry, which is still an immature labor market with many inconsistencies. We hope that by doing these surveys on an annual basis, the shared information can help to bring some stability and rationality to the rates that are paid across the board.

We hope to be taking a deeper look at the market in this year's survey. Last year's report concentrated on the geologist workforce and management level positions. We intend to gather data this year for management, professional, technical and general staff.

WHAT WE NEED

Of course it is impossible to produce any meaningful information without reliable and broadly collected data. We would really appreciate Companies partnering with us in gathering information. They can rest assured that the information collected is treated with the utmost confidentiality.

In the first instance, it would be appreciated if they could provide us with a list or spreadsheet of the total cost of employment for the positions in their company:

• There is no need to give names, but position titles are important
• The cost of employment includes tax and benefits
• For ex pats, do not include their location benefits such as housing
• We are looking for information across the board, that is ex pats, returnees and locals working here 
  

For the purpose of this survey, we are really only focusing on those parts of the industry that have relationship with mining activity, either directly or in support. So activities such as marketing would not be included.

There may be companies who slipped through our net. We would still be very keen for them to participate. They can call Swann directly on +86 21 6391 0688. Or they can email us at china.admin@swannglobal.com The broader the participation, the more valid the information that we gather.

WHAT THEY GET

There will be a report written by Swann that will be published in the Mining Journal CHINA around the time of the China Mining 2007 conference.

Furthermore, those companies who participate will be welcome to enquire more deeply into the data. That is, if there are specific compensation questions or issues that can be clarified from the information, we will be pleased to give those companies detailed/specific reports where possible. Certainly we will be happy to collaborate and advise based on the knowledge that is derived from the survey data. There would not be any charge for this information for companies that participate in the information gathering.

We are looking forward to broad contributions to this year's survey. It is a great sign of the collaborative approach of the mining community here, that this sort of information can be collected and shared.

For your reference, the 2006 report is still accessible on the Swann website. The link is www.swannglobal.com and go to the China tab and then Swann & HR in the China section of the site.

We are very grateful for the support and encouragement of CIMG in this exercise.

Peter Arkell
The Swann Group
Located at: Shanghai Times Square Office Tower
Room 1406, 93 Huai Hai Zhong Lu, Shanghai 200021. PR China
Phone: +86 21 6391 0688, Fax: +86 21 5382 0977
Mobile: +86 136 8184 4802
www.swannglobal.com