"The establishment of AIM forms part of our commitment to the long-term sustainability of our business, supported by our ability to offer on-going professional development opportunities for our employees," said PYBAR CEO, Brendan Rouse.

"This is a significant step in enabling PYBAR to develop our workforce in line with national standards. It will also ensure that we are able to offer training that is current, relevant, and applicable in the workplace across a range of roles."

AIM will facilitate Certificate II and III in Underground Metalliferous Mining programmes as well as numerous short courses, providing significant opportunities for PYBAR employees.

Already, 80 workers from various PYBAR sites are enrolled in the Certificate III program in Underground Metalliferous Mining.

In addition to the RTO approval, AIM has received approval from the NSW Resources Regulator to offer the one-day Learning from disasters course which is rolling out across New South Wales. The course, developed by the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, is designed for mine managers and supervisors ensuring lessons from past mining disasters are learnt.

In preparing for the RTO application, Pybar training packages were reviewed and updated to meet national standards.

PYBAR also consulted with state governments and held discussions with the Tasmanian Government to reduce barriers to traineeships in the underground metalliferous mining sector.

PYBAR Shet manager, Robert Patterson said it is important that PYBAR is able to offer employees opportunities to grow through obtaining formal qualifications in line with the national framework.

"Our ability to offer a wide range of training supports the development of our workforce as well as the regions in which we operate," he said.

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