Employment and training

Diavik is a significant contributor to Canada's northern economy. Duirng construction, more than 40 per cent of the several hundred people who built the Diavik mine were northern residents, and C$900 million in contracts went to northern firms, doubling Diavik's goal. Furthermore, two-thirds of the northern spending (C$600 million) was with northern Aboriginal joint ventures and northern firms, an achievement never reached before in Canada.

In 2005, more than 70 per cent of the mine's employees were northerners, and 35 per cent of these Aboriginal (falling a little short of its goal of 40 per cent). 75 per cent of the goods and services purchased (approximately $200 million is spent annually) were purchased in the north, and 39 per cent of this was with Aboriginal companies. Barring the Aboriginal employment goal, Diavik has exceeded all the employment and spending goals formalised in the Socio-Economic Monitoring Agreement. For 2006, Diavik anticipates it will again achieve its northern spending commitment of 70 per cent.

The Diavik mine has offered much to the region, not only in terms of jobs, but in also in terms of training and in terms of capacity-building. The intensive construction programme, for example, provided challenging training ground for new northern business ventures, and their business capacity grew throughout.

Some highlights:

• Through an innovative community-based training initiative, where members of the community nominated the trainees and administered the programme, trade helpers were trained up with a view to them taking on apprenticeships. Diavik partnered with northern colleges, territorial, federal and Aboriginal governments and contractors to provide hands-on and classroom-based training (50/50) to build confidence in students with the hope that they would successfully sit a trades entrance examination. More than 200 candidates completed trades entrance training, with the majority of graduates finding employment with Diavik and other local employers.
• The mine has offered opportunities for training in a wide range of areas: from heavy equipment operation, welding, construction, plumbing, electrical, carpentry, roof repairs, renovations, cooking, surveying to soil gradation, mine operations and maintenance and security. It also provides opportunities for individuals to diversify skills. By way of example, Margaret Hanak, an Inuit from Kugluktuk joined sub-contractor Nahanni Construction as a carpenter, but was keen to diversify her skills and increase her income. She subsequently trained as a driller, then a truck driver, and is now moving up to operate a 218 tonne haul truck at Diavik.
• Diavik is a founder of the Mine Training Society that now oversees training projects for the mining industry, with a budget of nearly $15 million. Contracting out work is seen by Diavik as another way to leave behind a positive legacy. By outsourcing to local companies, Diavik has helped to build local capacity that will live past the life of the mine. About 80 per cent of outsource contracts are with Aboriginal firms, with $1 billon worth of work being done with Aboriginal firms since 1999. Diavik works with these contractors to ensure that their policies and procedures are aligned with Diavik and will help Diavik meet its many commitments. A few examples of Aboriginal-owned contracted firms include:
  
  • I&D Management Services - supplies heavy equipment operators.
  • Ek'ati Services - supplies catering and camp services.
  • Tli Cho Logistics - supplies site services contract (road and airstrip maintenance, snow clearing, handling of aircraft on ground). Tli Cho Logistics is a good example of a new Aboriginal company that Diavik helped to create, but which has now spread its wings. The company has bought out its partner and is doing reclamation work for the government, as well as work with the upcoming DeBeers mine.
  • Kitikmeot Cementation Mining Development - is running a training programme to help Diavik create Aboriginal underground miners for the next stage of its mining operations.

• The mine's dedicated Workplace Resource Centre, which designs education plans specific to the needs of each learner, recently won an award for excellence in workplace literacy. The award, conferred by the Conference Board of Canada, was in the Large Business Initiative category. As well as assisting with literacy, the Centre enables workers to upgrade their maths, science and computer skills and to write trade apprenticeship, college and university exams on site, as well as to access online courses. It works in partnership with trade colleges to deliver pre-trades education and trades apprenticeship courses, and also offers an arts and culture programme to promote cultural and community awareness.
• Diavik's Aboriginal Leadership Development Programme offers more than 160 hours of leadership training and mentoring from Diavik staff and is designed to ensure Aboriginal people are employed at all levels throughout the organisation. The second group of graduates recently completed this programme.