Job vacancy data from the Bureau of Statistics survey released yesterday indicate the mining industry was attempting to employ a record 6200 workers in May.

Between February and May, mining vacancy figures surged almost 20 per cent at a time when the total jobs on offer plunged 2.5 per cent.

The total of 6200 vacancies is far more than at any time during the Howard government's mining boom when job openings only topped 5000. It is also extreme to the magnitude of the mining industry as an employer.

Although mining employs fewer than 200,000 Australians, it had 6200 jobs on offer. Manufacturing, which employs almost one million Australians, had 11,200 job openings.

''The mining skill shortage never went away,'' according to David Edwards, strategic manager of labour hire firm Drake Australia.

''Mining workers are very hard to find. You need critical skills - more than in other industries - and you often need them in remote locations.''

He said the hiring problem had become crucial as the economy gained back its health.

''It's one of the few positive arguments you hear about slowing resources investment; there are bottlenecks of infrastructure and skilled employees,'' Mr Edwards said. ''They are a brake on how quickly the industry can expand.''

Highlighting the problem of inviting the right labourers to locations such as Western Australia, the numbers indicate that it is more than twice as easy to get a job in WA as in Victoria. In May, there were only 1.9 out-of-work West Australians for each vacancy compared to 4.4 Victorians.

Statistically, the best market for job seekers is the Northern Territory where there are more offers than unemployed people to fill them.

''Things are going to get worse for employers,'' Mr Edwards said. ''Last year if you had a job you sat tight in it no matter what you thought of your employer. But this year ... there are some indications about half of all workers are thinking about moving. Our own survey shows around 25 per cent are thinking of it seriously.

''For mining employers needing highly skilled workers to fill critical roles in remote locations, it's a real problem.''

Conducted in the third week of May, the Bureau of Statistics survey is regarded more reliable than the private studies of job advertisements because it includes all vacancies whether or not are advertised.