Fears FIFO work will turn gold towns into ghost towns

Many FIFO workers want to live permanently near mines but housing shortages make it difficult. (Richard Wainwright/AAP PHOTOS)

As mining executive Ron Heeks spruiks a major project to investors, he makes a pointed effort to highlight an attribute unrelated to the massive returns it will bring.

"Importantly, it's not a FIFO (fly-in, fly-out) operation," he tells the mining industry's annual Diggers and Dealers gabfest in Kalgoorlie.