March 7, 2019 - A new national women in mining survey conducted by the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) has showcased the challenging experiences of women employed in the modern resources industry.

The data, launched as part of AusIMM’s International Women’s Day Series in Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth dictated that although women’s participation in the industry was slowly increasing and the gender pay gap shrinking, support for women in the sector needed critical attention.

With over 600 participants, the survey conducted in February compared answers given by women, to the answers provided by their male counterparts late last year during AusIMM’s Professional Employment and Remuneration Survey.

The data found that over 57 percent of female respondents indicated they did not perceive the industry as diverse, and over 40 percent did not perceive the industry as inclusive.

Of the 21 percent of women who indicated they held a FIFO/DIDO role in the sector, 5 times as many women indicated that health care services were below average when compared to their male counterparts.

Further to this, the data found that 7 times more women saw diversity and inclusion as a priority when compared to their male counterparts.

These findings were identified in a survey cohort where 97% of respondents held a bachelor’s degree or higher, demonstrating a highly skilled and capable workforce.

To overcome female challenges in the industry, female participants indicated that the three most important areas of focus were equal employment opportunities, flexible workplaces and an increase in industry leadership.

AusIMM CEO Stephen Durkin used the launch of the data and the AusIMM International Women’s Day event series to commit AusIMM again to leadership in the areas of diversity and inclusion.

“AusIMM recognizes that we have challenges in our industry when it comes to diversity and inclusion. The numbers make that clear,” said Durkin.

“We are deeply committed to playing a strong leadership role to help fix these problems as the peak body for resources professionals.”

“We’re focusing on our own strategies and policies at AusIMM so that we can lead by example. We are taking real steps to be a more contemporary, welcoming and future-focused organization.”

AusIMM has committed to holding this survey annually to analyze the perceptions and experiences of women in the sector and track industry progress.

Download the survey snapshot document here.