GENDER EQUITY IN MINING WORKS 17 V ales Gender Challenge V ale is one of the world s largest mining companies and has been operating in Canada for over 100 years It is the secondlargest nickel producer in the world V ale s nickel operation in Sudbury Ontario is one of the largest integrated mining complexes in the world including fve mines a mill a smelter a refnery and approximately 4000 employees Globally women represent just 12 of V ale s workforce V ale is in the process of adopting practices that focus on diversity and inclusion while aiming to recognize and promote the uniqueness of all its workers V ale recognised that systemic barriers were built into its Sudbury operation s written policies and procedures that deterred women from applying for certain job opportunities A conscious decision was made to remove these barriers and encourage an open inclusive and diverse workplace V ale joins GEM W orks In 2016 V ale implemented the GEM W orks program and began evaluating its Sudbury operation to identify where changes could be made Existing workers and new job applicants in the maintenance area were dominantly male the language used in job postings was not gender inclusive and the interview panel was entirely male Meet V ale Sudbury s Change Agents T o facilitate the GEM W orks program two Change Agents were identifed at V ale s Sudbury Operations Dave Duczeminski a senior maintenance manager and Dawn V agnini a human resources professional Both Change Agents successfully completed the GEM W orks Learn to Make a Dif ference training program consisting of four online elearning modules that explain the practical applications of the GEM W orks program V ALE SUDBUR Y ONT ARIO CASE STUDY 6 The most cr eative successful and enjoyable envir onments ar e the most diverse ones The best solutions come not fr om likeminded people but fr om a team of people with dif fer ent perspectives experiences and backgr ounds Helen Francis Leader of the Continuous Impr ovement Jour ney for V ale in Canada and GEM W orks Gender Champion As a hiring manager my main objective is to hir e the absolute best people we can fnd GEM W orks pr esented an oppor tunity to expand the pool and have a better chance of picking the right people Dave Duczeminski Manager Maintenance Suppor t Ontario Division V ale