Agnico Eagle Mines : A WOMAN ON THE MOVE

Meadowbank's Renee Pudnak Wins Michel Létourneau Award.

Renee Pudnak is a woman on the move in the mining industry. As the first woman to achieve Class 1 Heavy Equipment Operator status at the Meadowbank Complex, Renee is helping to break down barriers and inspire other women to pursue a career in mining.

In recognition of her talents and her influence in making the workplace more inclusive, Renee has won the 2021 Michel Létourneau Award.

This prestigious award is presented annually to an Agnico Eagle employee or team that makes a strong contribution to teamwork, productivity improvements, cost control, innovation, accident prevention and/or health and safety.

The award was presented to Renee during a virtual ceremony on July 28th celebrating employee Good Moves in health, safety, environment, community and business throughout 2021-2022. Over the past 8 years, the Good Moves campaign has highlighted more than 4,000 employee contributions that have improved Agnico Eagle's performance.

During the ceremony, Renee's inspiring career path was celebrated. In 2011, she joined Meadowbank's Housekeeping Department, then transitioned to working in the mine as a Haul Truck Operator. Renee later made another career advancement to the Energy and Infrastructure (E&I) department, where she started on the Career Path program to become a Heavy Equipment Operator. After numerous training hours and skill tests, Renee successfully became the first woman to achieve Class 1 Heavy Equipment Operator status. She is now qualified to operate many types of large equipment.

The award was presented by Ammar Al-Joundi, President & CEO, Patrice Gilbert, Vice President Health, Safety, Security & Advisor Indigenous Affairs, and the award's namesake, our former colleague Michel Létourneau. Now retired, Michel was a visionary leader of our health, safety and security programs.

In presenting Renee with her award, Ammar said, "Renee, not only do you bring immense talent and determination to your role, through your training and hard work you are influencing behaviours to make the workplace more inclusive and you provide a positive example to women aspiring to pursue careers in the mining industry. Let's continue to bring our best selves to work everyday, to reach our full potential and more - as inspired by Renee's example."