Page 4 - Donlin Spring 2021 Newsletter

EMPLOYEE HIGHLIGHT: MEG DAY SMITH
HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER
By Samantha Angaiak-Miller
Since work on the Donlin Gold project began more than two decades ago, our strong priority to hire shareholders has become one of the most highly-recognized benefits of the project for the Yukon-Kuskokwim region. In 2020, the company’s shareholder hire reached 80 percent, a challenging bar to meet given the hurdles presented by COVID-19. The driving force behind recruiting and hiring local employees for this year’s drilling program was Human Resources Manager, Meg Day Smith.
With more than 30 years of experience working in the mining industry, workforce development and shareholder hire has become Smith’s passion. “I was committed to shareholder hire and the success that this would bring
to the region. I was drawn to be a part of this team with positive statewide potential,” Smith said. With yearly unemployment numbers consistently among the highest percentages in the state, Smith has worked among workforce development groups throughout Alaska to focus on building more employment opportunities.
“We understood what the high-priority jobs were in the industry, so we put together some training programs that weren’t available at the time and identified where the gaps in talent were throughout the state—which included the region, too.”
Meg worked with
the state’s labor department to determine the skill sets in the Yukon- Kuskokwim region
and the types of jobs people held in Western Alaska. This work eventually connected her with Alaska EXCEL, a youth program which helps prepare high school students and
young adults for life beyond the classroom. The program has successfully developed students year after year until graduation. “I knew immediately EXCEL was the program that would provide Donlin Gold a future workforce and part of that was getting to know the students,” Smith said. There are currently at least seven graduates of the EXCEL program working at Donlin Gold. “I remember the first day that they were in seventh grade and now they’re employees at Donlin Gold...that is what it’s all about,” Smith said. “It’s showing them their potential, giving them the confidence and the team-building skills to see themselves through to graduation and beyond.”
Many of the relationships built with shareholders are long- lasting, sometimes years after employees are no longer working at camp. “I get phone calls just out of nowhere calling just to say ‘hi’ and tell me how much they’ve appreciated and loved their job. For me, personally, that brings me the most joy.”
Meg facilitated the direct hiring of the employees
in January to be based at the Donlin Gold Camp for
its drilling program spanning from the spring to fall months. Approximately 120 total employees work at camp at a time, divided into two weeks on, two weeks
off rotational schedule. “We can hire people from the region into an industry they may not have worked in before; they can then provide for their families and still be able to subsistence hunt and fish and be close with the community, too,” Smith said.
When COVID-19 prompted a 7-week temporary camp closure, Smith worked along with other company leaders to implement more stringent health and safety measures. “We all knew that, for the region in which we do business, health and safety of Elders and community members are our top priority.” Camp reopened with enhanced COVID-19 protocols, limited in-region travel and mandatory testing as well as social distancing practices. While many unknowns about the pandemic
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