Hays surveyed 606 people across Australia and found one in three respondents said they knew someone who had moved directly into the resources industry to take advantage of the boom.

A further 16.5% know someone who has moved to an organisation servicing the industry.

Hays Resources & Mining senior regional director Simon Winfield said workers were aware of the multitude of jobs on offer in the resource industry due to a second boom in the sector.

"They also know that the number of jobs available is going to increase in the years ahead," Winfield said.

"BHP Billiton recently announced that Australia's resources industry will need an extra 170,000 workers in the next five years."

Winfield said the boom provided opportunities for a range of different positions.

"It's not only engineers or other technical experts who can benefit from the resources boom," he said.

"Basically, any candidate with experience in the resources and mining industry is in a great position to pick and choose the roles they want."

Hays said anyone looking to break into the resources and mining industry should talk to people in the industry about what is required, gain mining experience and be prepared to start at the bottom and work their way up from an entry-level role.