Holding his sixth child, Annie, in his arms, Mark Bryant is acutely aware of what being out of work means for him and his family.

The operator at the Tahmoor coal mine, south of Sydney, is one of 250 contractors who have been told they would no longer be receiving a pay cheque.

"It's going to get very difficult for families, especially depending on their situations if they haven't been able to put extra money away," he said.

"Me personally, I can absorb it for a couple of weeks, beyond that I'm not too sure, that's only because during the situation I've realised that this could have happened at any time.

" I believe that if this was to continue for an extended period, beyond two weeks, you'd start to see effects on families and communities. "

Labour hire workers on Friday received a

See Full Page