Fly-in fly-out is a method of employing people in remote areas by flying them temporarily to the work site instead of relocating employees and their families permanently.
Generally, such sites use portable buildings since there is no long-term commitment to that location (e.g., the mine will close once the minerals have been extracted, the drilling rig will be moved once the well is dug).
However, companies are increasingly offering facilities such as pools, tennis courts, and gyms as a way of attracting and retaining skilled staff.
It is also detrimental to the mental health of FIFO workers, causing stress and anxiety as well as increased use of drugs and alcohol.
[18] FIFO (as well as DIDO) work forces create a temporary rise in population of the regional communities that they are assigned to.
[19] Improved integration practices as well sharing resources are necessary for FIFO organizations to encourage employees into more community participation.
[21] FIFO workers also make it difficult for local communities to have availability for tourism due to the large renting out of housing units at a fringe tax benefit.
[26] In order to meet recruitment needs, in 2012 Australian resource sector employers began turning to temporary skilled workers using the 457 visas.
These time-consuming and complex measures included: skill assessments for certain opportunities and English proficiency, requirement of a sponsor to start working within 90 days of arrival, accept visa restrictions for start-up companies, and much more.
[26] Salary restrictions on 457 visas also made it difficult for firms to attract FIFO workers especially with competition from larger projects in other regions.
[27] Regular travel across jurisdictional boundaries, and living in close proximity are inherent to this type of work, which causes major challenges during the social distancing measures used during the COVID-19 pandemic.