Aboriginal employment a focus for Hudbay – The Reminder

June 25, 2015

In 2013, at the height of the Idle No More protest movement, Hudbay found itself mired in controversy.

Mathias Colomb Cree Nation, a small native band based in Pukatawagan, declared the company in breach of treaty law by opening its Lalor and Reed mines near Snow Lake without First Nations consent.

The powers that be (and much of the public) sided with Hudbay and mining carried on as planned.

The episode may have soured some First Nations people on Hudbay, but it hasn’t dampened the company’s enthusiasm for bringing more Aboriginals – perhaps a lot more – into the workforce.

“We find that building familiarity and understanding is what we need to accomplish,” says Rob Winton, vice-president, Manitoba Business Unit for Hudbay. “If you don’t work in a sector, you might know what it does in the broadest sense but not have much familiarity with all the aspects and details of it. I don’t think that’s unusual or unique to First Nations. But because we want to provide opportunity for Aboriginal people to be part of Hudbay, we’re trying to bridge that gap. We want them to see and believe that Hudbay is an option.”

Read More: http://www.thereminder.ca/news/local-news/aboriginal-employment-a-focus-for-hudbay-1.1977714