This line graph illustrates the number of employees in thousands in the mining industry in Australia between 1900 and 1990. Overall, it is clear that employment in the Australian mining industry declined significantly throughout this century, although there was a peak in the number of employees in 1950.
At the beginning of the century, more than 60,000 people were employed in this sector, but by the end of the first decade this fell to only 40,000. The number of employees continued to decline throughout the 1920s and 1930s, but at a much lower rate than previously, reaching a low of 30,000 in 1940. This was followed by a dramatic growth to 50,000 in the next 10 years.
However, from 1950 onwards the decline began again and was marked by a sharp drop at the beginning of the 1960s, after which the rate of decline slowed. By 1990, only 15,000 people were working in this sector.