More female faces on Queensland mine sites

More women are choosing careers in Queensland’s minerals and energy sectors according to a new report by the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

The QRC’s latest survey of member companies shows that the proportion of women in non-traditional roles has grown from 7 percent in 2006-07 to almost 10 percent in 2007-08.

‘While women are still under represented in the sector, the upward trend is a pleasing result,’ said QRC Chief Executive Michael Roche.

‘When we launched our Women in Resources Action Plan (WRAP) in 2006 we set a target of doubling the proportion of women in non-traditional roles (such as operators, trades and engineers) from 6 percent to 12 percent by 2020.

‘We are well on track to meeting and exceeding that target.’

Mr Roche said that the ongoing WRAP campaign was designed to attract and retain female employees across the full range of resource sector careers.

‘The campaign is focussed on ensuring that women understand the career opportunities in the sector and that the work environment meets their needs.’

‘However, women still make up only 11.3 percent of our total workforce and there is clearly more work to be done to resolve the gender imbalance in our industry.’

Other highlights from the survey include:

	From 2006-07 to 2007-08, female employment growth outpaced male employment growth in percentage terms 32.4 percent as against 13.7 percent although this came off a low base. Overall employment in the industry grew at 15.8 percent in this period, implying significant steps have been taken towards gender equality in the workforce. Women accounted for 13 percent of new hires in 2007-08, up from 11 percent in 2006-07.
	There has been significant growth in the number of female tradespeople from just eight in 2005-06 to 81 in 2007-08
	The number of female operator/production employees has grown from 280 in 2005-06 to 327 in 2007-08.
	Measured as full-time equivalent (FTE) positions, the number of female applicants for positions has jumped from 2884 in 2006-07 to 4671 in 2007-08, or an increase of 62 percent. This was particularly evident in the category of engineers, where the number of applications from women doubled from 54 to 108 and also in the category of financial professional where applications from women increased from 102 to 642 over the space of one year.

‘Despite the current economic downturn, the resources sector has to be ready for the next upswing and this means having sufficient skilled people to enable the industry to prosper and grow,’ said Mr Roche.

‘The downturn will not see any slackening in the QRC’s programs to attract and retain women in resource sector careers.’

The survey results are contained in the latest edition of the QRC’s Leading practice principles for the attraction and retention of women in the minerals and energy sector. It is available on the QRC’s website, or by contacting the QRC for a hard copy.

‘The leading practice principles are an important part of the WRAP campaign and the new edition is rich with case studies of how our member companies are putting these principles into practice,’ Mr Roche said.

Further information: Caroline Morrissey 07 3316 2507 or 0417 770 893

	Leading practice principles for the attraction and retention of women in the minerals and energy sector - Click here to download