Under the $180 million arrangement, WorkPac will provide professional and industrial labour hire and payroll services, manage the existing workforce and source Olympic Dam’s future staffing requirements.

Some staff from previous contract holder, Chandler McLeod Group, were concerned about job security when news of the takeover came last month.

WorkPac chief executive officer Theresa Moltoni told The Roxby Downs Sun she expected job numbers to increase.

“We do not expect any decrease in the number of positions available, indeed with the reopening of the Clark shaft scheduled soon, we expect the opportunities will actually increase,” she said.

“WorkPac has given the existing contractors every opportunity to apply for positions with WorkPac. Obviously their skills and experience will be highly regarded.”

WorkPac was one of many suppliers invited to submit a proposal for the contract last year.

“There was an exhaustive assessment process which included a formal face-to-face presentation and a number of references,” Ms Moltoni said.

A BHP Billiton spokesperson said key benefits WorkPac brought to Olympic Dam were its safety performance, industrial relations strengths, technical capacity, experience at other BHP Billiton assets, management experience and its overall innovation and capability.

“WorkPac is delighted to partner with BHP Billiton at Olympic Dam. We see ourselves as an employer rather than a labour hire company and that means we can bring a proactive and forward thinking approach to managing risk,” Ms Moltoni said.

WorkPac has 37 offices across Australia.