St Barbara is the latest gold miner to join the Gold Industry Group and is leading the way for gender equality in mining after receiving the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) ‘Employer of Choice for Gender Equality’ citation for the fourth consecutive year.
With St Barbara Managing Director and CEO Bob Vassie a WGEA Pay Equity Ambassador since 2014, this latest citation confirms the Company’s commitment to addressing pay equity and ensuring gender equality in recruitment, promotions and reward and recognition.
“Gender equality is a journey and, whilst I am delighted with St Barbara’s progress in gender equality in what has traditionally been a male-dominated industry, we are actively pursuing further improvement,” said Mr Vassie.
"As a Pay Equity Ambassador, I encourage more resource companies to participate in the WGEA Employer of Choice program."
To receive the citation, organisations are required to demonstrate how they are addressing a number of benchmarks for gender equality including leadership, learning and development, gender remuneration gaps, flexible working and other initiatives to support family responsibilities, employee consultation, preventing sex-based harassment and discrimination, and targets for improving gender equality outcomes.
St Barbara has set targets for the representation of women across the Company, as well as in leadership roles and Board representation. The Company also provides industry best practice parental leave and return to work provisions, and special paid leave for domestic violence victims.
St Barbara has significantly reduced the overall pay equity gap since 2007 as a result of changes in gender composition, and for many years has maintained a nil gender pay gap in like-for-like roles.
This year, more than 120 organisations were granted the citation, however, St Barbara is the only mining company to receive the citation.