March officially marks both International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, and every year we’re proud to commemorate the women in mining who are helping to shape, grow and evolve our industry. At Calibre, we’ve intentionally created an environment where women can thrive – within our workforce, and within the communities where we work.
It’s no secret that women have historically been in the minority when it comes to careers in the mining sector. According to a 2021 McKinsey study, women represent an estimated 8-17% of the global mining workforce.
We’re thrilled to be hitting the high end of those industry averages, with approximately 16% of our workforce being women. And it’s definitely by design!
“Although statistics show that mining has traditionally been a male-dominated field, there has been an obvious shift,” says Laura Clark, Human Resources Manager at Calibre’s Pan Mine in Nevada. “In general, women are no longer pigeonholed into ‘traditional’ female roles such as administration, and mining has proved to be a lucrative career for women who need and/or want to work.”
Here’s a snapshot of our approach to fostering gender diversity and equal opportunities within each of our three regions, highlighting a handful of the incredible women who contribute to our success as a company every day.
Senior Exploration Geologist Maria Alexandra Castro Dominguez
Developing diverse opportunities for women in Nicaragua
Women are critical to our operations in Nicaragua – at all levels. But many face barriers when it comes to training for and accessing opportunities in the mining sector. In a country where traditional gender roles prevail, women may struggle to uncover avenues where they can move beyond conventional occupations.
To address these challenges, at Calibre we strive to create opportunities for more women to enter the mining sector and strengthen their skills. Our commitment is to foster their professional growth and promote a more inclusive environment in the industry, highlights Eloy Rubio, SM of Human Capital. Women like Maria Alexandra Castro Dominguez, who joined us in 2021 as a Senior Exploration Geologist at our El Limón mine. Castro Dominguez spends most of her time in the field conducting exploration work, where she collaborates with colleagues to take our work from the prospecting phase to exploratory surveys. “I have always had the good fortune of being with colleagues and coworkers who take care of each other as if we were family,” she says.
We also help advance opportunities and living conditions outside of mining for women in Nicaragua. For example, we partnered with the Center for an Understanding with Nature (CEN) and the Pioneer Women of the Mountains Network to found an ongoing entrepreneurship program for women in local communities. And we’ve worked with the Technical Education and Vocational Training Institute (INATEC) to provide 43 women in Riscos de Oro, near Borosi, with bakery and confectionery training, to help them access opportunities to provide for their families.
In communities around the Pavon Gold Mine , we sponsored a program to provide improved stoves in 120 households, reducing indoor smoke.
Senior Exploration Geologist Anastasia Ogloff
Women lead the way in Nevada
At Pan Mine in Nevada, we’re lucky to have many skilled and talented women in a wide range of roles, including senior leadership, geology, lab, and clerical maintenance. Women like Anastasia Ogloff, Senior Exploration Geologist, bring passion and experience to her role in identifying opportunities for exploration, solving geological challenges, and planning drill programs.
“I have always been curious about what was inside mountains, and I loved learning geology,” says Ogloff, who brings both a Bachelor of Science in Geology and a Master of Earth Sciences to her role. “It’s incredibly rewarding to be able to literally explore for a living! Calibre makes it extra rewarding because they are a highly ambitious company,” she adds. “They are eager to make advancements and willingly provide resources to have new ideas tested.”
Laura Clark, Human Resources Manager at Pan Mine, concurs, adding that Calibre’s people policy commits to ensuring female team members have equal access to advancement and growth opportunities. “Calibre has maintained a steadfast commitment to equality for all employees,” she says. “As a female senior leader, I recognize how capable, adaptable, and strong our female team is, and we offer equal support to all employees. We foster and encourage a ‘speak-up’ culture, immediately addressing any concerns or complaints . And we conduct internal equity reviews and ensure our promotions are based on merit.”
Planning and Reliability Superintendent Laura Daye
A focus on equity, diversity and inclusivity in Newfoundland
At our Valentine Gold Mine in Newfoundland, Canada, we also ensure opportunities for women exist in all aspects of our operations, including management, supervisor/superintendent positions, mine operations, health, safety, environment and training, and mill operations. “Our hiring model is based on our GEDI plan, which supports gender, equity, diversity and inclusivity, and helps us recruit and support a diverse workforce,” says Joanne Sullivan, Manager, Human Resources. “We recognize that all workplaces benefit from diversity.”
Thanks to this plan, we’re able to leverage the incredible talents of people like Laura Daye, a Planning and Reliability Superintendent, who joined us last year. Daye works with supervisors, planners and engineers to develop maintenance strategies and interact with all team members to encourage their development and ensure they have what they need to complete their work safely and successfully. “The best thing about working at Calibre is the like-minded people and the positive work environment,” Daye says. “The morale is high, and everyone is excited about the potential Calibre holds.”
Because the mining sector has historically been dominated by male employees, Calibre works hard in all of our local communities to ensure opportunities for women are not only visible, but also desirable. And we’re pleased to support or partner with stakeholder organizations that align with our GEDI plan, including the STEMforGirls program, the Office to Advance Women Apprentices, and the Newfoundland and Labrador Office of Women Entrepreneurs (NLOWE). “Last fall we hosted a group of students in the STEMforGirls program on a day-long mine tour and received overwhelmingly positive feedback on the event,” says Sullivan. “Through these activities, we hope that girls will see themselves as future Calibre employees.”
So many of our female team members have played key roles in the company’s success, including those we’ve previously highlighted in this blog post , and many more who are too numerous to mention by name. Our thanks go out to everyone who has worked hard to help us grow as a company and achieve our collective goals – for women and beyond.