Women have started to make a mark in the male-dominated mining industry as they shift from mere administrative jobs to highly technical positions that used to be exclusively held by men.
Lawyer Froilan Lawilao, legal officer of Benguet Corporation (BC), said that when he joined the company more than 10 years ago, women employees were performing office administrative functions.
“Through the years, our company has evolved. More women are being hired and they perform highly technical functions such as geologists, metallurgists, mining engineers. Before, there were no women doing those jobs,” the lawyer said during the “Minera Forum 2025” organized by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) on Wednesday at the agency’s regional office here that falls during the celebration of Women's Month this March.
He said “It used to be that no women employees were involved in technical operations but now we have a lot. We have mining engineers who are women. The head of the milling, the mines and the operations are women. Even the metallurgy is led by a woman,” he said.
Lawilao added that a look into their company’s profile will show that most of the managers and supervisors are women.
He added that their company’s president, Lina Fernandez who was appointed in 2021, rose from the ranks and not in any way connected to the owners.
Benigno Cesar Espejo, officer-in-charge and the concurrent head of the geosciences division of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB)- Cordillera, said that their immediate past regional director was the first woman regional director of the MGB-CAR was the first woman geologist of the office.
Out of the 7,587 employees in the region's mining industry, 786 are women, whereas there were very few 10 to 15 years ago.
Scrutinizing eyes
Lawilao shared that women leaders have a more careful way of handling people and are also very scrutinizing, wanting things done properly.
“Our president has a way of pushing performance or scolding people like a mother to her children careful not to offend the emotion,” he said.
“Mabusisi din lalo kung expenses yan. Parang nanay din na namimili ng mga pangangailangan pero very decisive sa pagpili at praktikal (She scrutinizes things like a mother especially in expenditures to ensure that there is no wastage in purchasing necessary priority items),” the lawyer said.
He said “the nature of a woman being strict but compassionate" is visible in Fernandez's management.
In terms of decision-making, the lawyer said their president is guided by company policies, thus there is not much difference.
Going up the ladder
Three young female technical persons - a chemical engineer, a metallurgist and a mining engineer currently hold positions in mining companies classified as middle managers.
Steffi Flor Erpilo, Research and Development supervisor of Philex Mining Corporation and a chemical engineer by profession, said in the same press conference: “Makikipagsabayan ka sa kanila kasi hindi mo tinitingnan na babae ka kapag nagta-trabaho ka kundi empleyado na kailangan makatapos ng obligasyon ng maayos (You will match up with them and will not look at yourself as a woman but as an employee who needs to perform and finish a task).”
Justine Libo-on, Senior Metallurgist of the Itogon Suyoc Resources Incorporated (ISRI), also shared that in her job, she has to see to it that risks are minimized in performing their tasks of handling chemicals.
She said that being in the mining industry, she sees a sense of purpose in what she does.
Marywil Espinosa, a mining engineer at Lepanto Consolidated Mining Corporation, said with women being recognized for their talents and skills even in the male-dominated industry, she also dreams of further going up the career ladder. By Liza Agoot
Article courtesy of the Philippine News Agency
