Recognising women in resources

More than 300 people from across the Western Australian resource sector attended the Chamber of Minerals and Energy’s (WA) inaugural Women in Resources Awards held on Monday 8 March in Perth to coincide with International Women’s Day.

Celebrating the outstanding contributions of 78 nominations across three categories, the morning culminated in the surprise announcement of a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ for Erica Smyth.

With more than 30 years experience in the mineral and petroleum industries, Erica was the first female accepted into the McGill University to undertake an Applied Masters Degree after operating for 25 years, the first woman to be appointed a principal geologist with BHP Minerals in 1982, and the first woman to be appointed Chair of the Pilbara Development Commission in 2003.

Erica co-produced the “Red Dust in Her Veins – Women of the Pilbara” book. The book was very well received around Australia and internationally, endorsing women in and around the industry.

Other awards on the day went to:

WOMEN IN RESOURCES CHAMPION
Sabina Shugg was recognised for her outstanding role in promoting the role of women in the resources sector and the broader community.

Sabina has made significant contributions to the industry, particularly through her establishment of the Women in Mining and Resources Network in WA (WIMWA). Through hard work and sourcing many sponsorship arrangements, Sabina has kept the network membership free.

1050 females within the resources sector have joined WIMWA, designed to support women in the mining and energy sectors. Sabina was instrumental in launching the inaugural and highly-successful WIMWA conference, held in September last year. More than 250 women attended where they were provided with support strategies and general education about the resources sector. Young women from several Perth high schools were also invited to attend the conference and several expressed interest in working in the mining industry as a consequence.

COMPANY INNOVATION
Woodside Energy Limited took out the award for company innovation, specifically for their flexible work and support initiatives.

Woodside Energy is leading the way in the Australian exploration and production industry in terms of its percentage of women in the workforce. Woodside has achieved a 30% increase in the number of women returning from maternity leave, a 90% increase in the number of female graduates, and more than doubled the number of women working in part time positions.

Currently, women account for just 18% of the resource sector workforce, compared to a national labour force figure of 45%.

OUTSTANDING WOMAN IN THE RESOURCES SECTOR
Kellie Parker is Manager Operations for Rio Tinto and was recognised for her exceptional achievements during her career with the Company.

Kellie has successfully held senior leadership roles in areas that are traditionally male dominated and has been instrumental in building diversity into her teams, while maintaining her key role as Manager of Operations - a 24 hour full-time critical position for business success.

In doing so, she has demonstrated an ability to exceed expectations while managing a very young family at the same time.

Congratulations to all winners.