Women key to crisis

By Lauren Ahwan    

Women are increasingly opting to study mining, despite being paid up to 38 per cent less than men when they get a job.

The University of Adelaide says 11.5 per cent of students undertaking its Bachelor of Engineering (Mining) degree are women, compared with 8 per cent when the course started in 2007.

It hopes to increase that figure to 18 per cent in coming years, bringing it in line with the number of women studying other engineering degrees.

The increase in women undertaking mining studies in South Australia coincides with a record number of women graduating from mining engineering at the University of Queensland (UQ) this year.

UQ spokesman Peter Knights says the participation of women in mining engineering fluctuates from year to year but there has been a definite upward trend over time.

University of Adelaide engineering faculty executive dean Professor Peter Dowd says attracting more women to mining is a key part of solving the industry’s skills crisis.

“If you were to increase the participation levels of women to that of men, you should solve the skills shortage overnight,” Professor Dowd says.

“Women would bring positive cultural change (to the mining industry). They have different ways of thinking about things and solving problems. If you talk to the general public about mining, it sounds like a dirty, dusty job in the middle of nowhere but it’s an extremely rewarding career.”

Professor Dowd says the skills gained in mining are readily transferable, allowing workers to move into the banking and finance arena, among others.

He is dismayed at reports of a gender pay gap within the industry, describing it as “blatantly wrong”.

The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) survey, released earlier this year, revealed a pay disparity starting at 8.7 per cent at graduate level, increasing to a 38.1 per cent gap at senior management level. The results, based on 2009 remuneration figures, show a marked increase in the gender pay gap from previous years, before the global financial crisis hit.

“The gender pay gap at most levels of responsibility has increased markedly in comparison to the 2008 survey, with pay per hour gap at entry level trebling from 2.9 per cent to 8.7 per cent,” AusIMMs women in mining network chair Donna Frater says.

“The clear implication is that while equity may be touted as a priority when times are good, some decision-makers fall back on old biases about the relative value of male and female employees when the going gets tough.”

The findings prompted another study, investigating the reasons for the pay disparity. It found caregiver responsibilities were believed to significantly reduce prospects for professional development and promotion, thus affecting pay equity.

Many respondents believed the remote locations and long-distance commute requirements were incompatible with caring for family – a finding which is disputed by Professor Dowd.

“Places like Roxby Downs are quite suitable environments for families,” he says.

“There are probably more social activities there than in the city, where people are expected to find their own entertainment.”

Final-year mining student Emma Westthorp, 21, says she has no concerns about working in a male-dominated environment when she graduates.

Ms Westthorp has already completed two work-experience stints, with PIRSA and at Dominion Mining’s Challenger goldmine, about 750km northwest of Adelaide, where she learnt first-hand to drive trucks, detonate explosives and work in the laboratory.

“You can work on-site, you can become a consultant after a number of years and work out of the city. You can also go and work for government,” she says.

“It’s still 90 per cent men on-site. But I’ve never felt like I was different. I’ve found everyone to be so nice.

“If we’re essentially doing the same job, then you shouldn’t be paid any less than the equivalent male counterpart.”

Article from The Advertiser, July, 2010.