Miners

Meet the miners

Workers like mineral sorter Gina Dávila will tell you that Fairtrade and Fairmined gold is more valuable than any other. Working with Fairtrade and Fairmined gold has made the miners a more powerful part of the industry. That's everyone who works at the mine, both men and women. The fair pay they earn has made life more secure for their families, while the extra Fairtrade premium has got them planning the future of their communities. And the Fairtrade and Fairmined standards have put measures in place to make work a safer place. Not just that, they safeguard the surrounding environment too.

Fairtrade and Fairmined gold is exclusively available from artisanal and small scale mining organisations across Latin America. Globally there are 100 million people who depend directly or indirectly on this type of mining. They are characterised by high levels of poverty, trapped in unfair supply chains and struggling to get a fair price for the gold they mine.

Fairtrade and Fairmined certification enables miners to:

• Earn their living with dignity by participating in a scheme that gives them better access to their rights
• Gain more security from knowing there is a minimum prices for the gold they mine
• Invest in the Fairtrade premium in community development projects such as education, health and environmental restoration
• Empower themselves, gaining bargaining power with the traders and more control in the supply chain by developing democratic collective organisations
• Improve their working conditions through the mandatory use of protective gear and safer use of chemicals
• Address gender equality through creating better access to mineral sources for women

Profiles

Cotapata Mining Cooperative, PDF Download
SOTRAMI, PDF Download
Oro Verde, PDF Download

For more information on mining and the gold industry see the Questions and Answers or the report Fairtrade and Fairmined Gold: Empowering responsible artisanal and small-scale miners.