The ‘Survival Guide for Mining Families’ helps families to survive and thrive despite the pressures of working away in the mining and resources industry, authors Alicia Ranford and Angie Willcocks say.

With nearly 180,000 copies sold worldwide, it’s an award-winning resource featuring professional advice and practical tips from Mining Family Matters co-Founder, Ranford, and psychologist, Willcocks.

South Australian-based Willcocks, a registered nurse, teamed up in 2010 with journalist Lainie Anderson to create Mining Family Matters, after her young children struggled to cope with their father’s fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) rosters. Alicia and her Mining Engineer husband, Joe, also moved six times in a decade, so she had become accustomed to relocating a young family, coping with life in isolated mining towns and staying happily married despite the challenges of FIFO.

Following lots of interest from companies involved in everything from construction and security to pipelines and logistics, the survival guide content has also been converted into a generic guide for employees who work away in any industry. It’s called ‘Working Away: A Survival Guide for Families’.

The working away guide has been adapted for Canadian workers (English and French versions available) and American workers.

The 32-page, A5 guides are quick and easy to read, and packed with practical advice to boost worker happiness and resilience. The 14 chapters include:

• What to expect in the first few months;
• House rules for a happy home;
• Boosting your workplace resilience;
• Overcoming stress, anxiety and sadness;
• Knowing your mental health first aid;
• Helping children to cope when you work away;
• Simple ways to stay connected;
• Making your money work; and
• Parenting on the same page.

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