Congratulations to Carol Nicklette – who recently celebrated her 45-year career milestone with BHP.

At 19 years old, Carol Nicklette completed her business studies at a commercial college in India and moved to Australia with her grandmother.

Within days of arriving in Perth, Carol got her first job with a legal company. After three months, she took a short trip to Port Hedland for a family christening. That brief visit turned into 27 years and the start of her 45 year career with BHP.

Prior to moving to Australia, Carol was engaged to Norm Nicklette. A few years later, Norm moved to Australia and married Carol in Port Hedland. Norm is also a long-standing BHP employee, having been with the company for 28 years.

Carol’s first role at Mt Newman Mining Company was as stenographer to the Superintendent Project Engineering at Nelson Point. Her role involved taking notes in shorthand at meetings, typing contracts, tender documents, scopes of work and specifications.

“Being only 19, I was a relatively inexperienced stenographer, so I was thrilled to start on a salary of $204 a fortnight,” Carol said.

Of her early days at Nelson Point, Carol remembers the clothing, food and technology.

“Site office-based ladies could wear strappy sun dresses and equally strappy footwear to work in the summer, and the tradesmen in the workshops wore sleeveless vests and shorts called stubbies,” Carol explained.

“The Nelson Point Mess served the most delicious fish and chips on Fridays for lunch, which we paid for with a ‘meal ticket’ purchased for about 50 cents.

“In 1978, we used electric typewriters, telex machines, Tippex and date stamps. There was no email, no internet, no Google and no mobile phones. If my boss was out on site and I needed to get an urgent message to him, I sometimes had to make up to eight phone calls to track him down.”

She bid Port Hedland farewell to work for the Vice President Integrated Planning in Perth office in 2005 and spent the next 16 years in the Integrated Operations/IPRO team before moving to Nickel West in 2021.

During her career with BHP, Carol has worked in various administration roles supporting Port Managers, Vice Presidents, General Managers and now an Asset President.

Carol has earned the nickname of ‘the Oracle’ among her colleagues, thanks to her in-depth knowledge of most BHP systems and processes.

Carol has made a lasting impression across our WA Iron Ore and Nickel West operations over the last four and a half decades. In fact, she even has an Iron Ore locomotive named after her!

Congratulations on reaching this amazing milestone Carol.