newy.com.au – The Hunter will be among the first regions to get a local division of NSW’s new Future Jobs and Investment Authority, following the passage of legislation requiring coal mine operators to give notice of closures and prepare worker support plans.
The NSW Government says the authority will help the Hunter, Illawarra, Central West and North West attract investment, develop skills and create jobs as their economies change. Its responsibilities will also include reporting on mine closures, providing workforce support and helping find productive uses for former mining land.
The operator requirements in the Future Jobs and Investment Bill 2025 are intended to give workers time to find other employment, retrain or prepare for retirement. Operators will have to provide closure notices within specified timeframes and outline how they will support workers when mining ends. The government’s announcement did not specify those notice periods or when the obligations would take effect.
The authority is backed by $29.7 million in ongoing funding, alongside more than $170 million in a new Future Jobs and Investment Fund. The government says the fund will receive additional contributions each year.
The Hunter and Central West local divisions will be established first. Each of the four regional divisions will include representatives of workers, industry, local government and the community. Their chairs will sit on the authority’s board alongside union and industry representatives.
Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley said the structure would give the region a say in planning for its future.
“The Future Jobs and Investment Authority will give Hunter families a direct voice in shaping their own future and ensure the next generation has certainty and can continue to access high-quality jobs across the Hunter for generations to come.”
Planning and Public Spaces Minister Paul Scully pointed to plans for land at Macquarie Coal Complex and Mt Arthur Mine as examples of work already under way. He said the proposed transformations could support more than 7,000 jobs in the future.
The government says about 25,000 people work directly in NSW’s coal mining industry, including more than 1,500 at Hunter Valley Operations. It said that project received approval in September to extend operations into the 2040s.
The legislation follows more than three years of consultation, according to the government. Appointments to the Hunter and Central West local divisions are to be announced.
