Major Drilling Continues Its Culture of Caring
Major Drilling is known as one of the world’s largest and most successful drilling services companies. It primarily serves the mining and mineral exploration industry. But some may wonder, with 625 drills and more than 2,700 employees in branches across the globe, what is the social impact the Company has in its communities?
It doesn’t take long to discover that Major Drilling employees have a caring heart that beats strongly in the communities where its field offices and headquarters are found. Employees work hard, but also give back.
“It’s an important part of our company culture to connect to the community through social responsibility efforts,” said Denis Larocque, Major Drilling President and CEO. “I continue to be impressed with the involvement and creativity shown by each of our locations each year to help address real needs in their local communities.”
Here is a snapshot of just some of the philanthropic efforts made by Major Drilling and its employees in 2018:
In Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada (Major Drilling Headquarters), Major Drilling sponsors many events and organizations including golf tournaments that help raise funds for cancer research, university programs, and matching employee contributions for a local women’s shelter. Employees get hands-on by donating blood, serving breakfast to students at a local school, planting gardens, sponsoring families in need at Christmastime, gathering turkeys for holiday meals and more. In 2018, Company President and CEO, Denis Larocque, co-chaired efforts which raised $1.8 million (CAD) for the local cancer center.
Major Drilling is changing lives in Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia, where the company donated two medical carts, worth 3 million turgugs ($1,250 USD) full of much-needed supplies to treat the most critical patients where the public hospital lacks adequate equipment. Safety is a shared priority for both Major Drilling and local hospitals. Now patients are being served more efficiently, and the hospital staff is experiencing better working conditions.
One hospital worker, a single mother with four children, received additional assistance from Major Drilling employees as they installed a new wooden floor, furniture, food, and gifts for the children in her family’s ger (traditional Mongolian round dwelling). Another single mother of four, in Erdenet, received a new ger, furniture, refrigerator, television and other needed supplies.
In Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Major Drilling employees helped the local children’s hospital provide toys for patients. Christmas food and gifts were provided for a family in need, and employees’ donations helped feed many local hungry families. The Major Drilling team also helped serve meals to Winnipeg’s poor and homeless community.
Major Drilling employees in La Serena, Chile make a variety of donations throughout the year mainly to help children in need, fight hunger, bring joy through Christmas gift giving, and support schools that need supplies. Employees in Medellin, Colombia gave Christmas gifts to children in the community and provided much-needed computing equipment to a local children’s home. They also supported, through donations, a foundation dedicated to helping children with spina bifida and other neurological disorders. The Mendoza, Argentina branch found employees contributing jackets, footwear, and fuel for cooking and heating to indigenous families in the nearby volcanic region of the country. Additional donations included Christmas food boxes, fundraising to improve equipment at the local soup kitchen, and celebrations for children’s day
At the Major Drilling location in Hermosillo, Mexico employees made donations to help disadvantaged kids travel to sporting events and to help teenagers travel to baseball training camps. They also provided used drilling rods to sustain school buildings, supported local religious festivals, and purchased blankets and supplies for the needy. The Major Drilling offices in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, sponsored a golf tournament and made donations to a local shelter dedicated to eradicating domestic violence for women, men, and children.
“There’s a human side to every company,” said Ben Graham, Major Drilling’s Vice President of Human Resources and Safety. “It’s our responsibility to put our best foot forward, not only in being excellent at what we do in drilling and safety, but also being the best corporate citizens we can be.”
Major Drilling is committed to bettering the communities where its employees live and work throughout the world. Social media users can learn about many of the company’s philanthropic efforts by following the #MajorDrillingCares hashtag.
