Imagine being told you belong in the workplace, only to arrive on site and realise that the very gear meant to protect you was never made for someone like you. That’s the daily reality for thousands of South African women working in sectors such as mining, energy and manufacturing.
Ill-fitting personal protective equipment (PPE), lack of proper facilities and the ever-present threat of gender-based violence aren’t just inconvenient, but pose a real danger to women that is completely avoidable.
Despite national commitments to gender equality and workplace safety, these sectors are still hostile terrain for many women. Whether far above or below ground, in a mine or atop a wind tower, women are expected to perform in environments that don’t take their basic needs fully into account. When you consider remote sites for mining and energy plants, it only amplifies the danger.
Take the case of an instrument technician working in a power plant control room far from the heavy machinery and manufacturing floor, yet still bound by safety regulations that mandate PPE. When she became pregnant, her employer had no maternity-appropriate PPE. Her only option was to take early maternity leave. That’s four months of leave, as per South African law, cut short by a lack of planning to accommodate an employee’s natural choice.
The consequence? She had to return to work just three months after giving birth, placing her newborn in care far earlier than she had planned. This isn’t just about logistics, it’s about undermining the precious window of post-natal bonding, breastfeeding, and emotional connection between mother and child.
When workplaces are designed without women in mind, the cost is felt not just on the job site, but in the nursery.
Policymakers must act
This is not a matter of comfort or convenience. It’s a matter of dignity. Of safety. Of life and long-term wellbeing. And it’s time for us policymakers to step in and collaborate with industry and manufacturers to change the status quo.
For decades, jobs, from coal mining and electrical engineering, to oil and gas extraction, have been dominated by male employees. As a result, everything from PPE to workplace design has followed suit.
Despite South Africa being a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, women in the energy sector still face systemic inequities that violate Article 11: the right to safe and healthy working conditions.
Ill-fitting PPE is one of the most glaring examples. Women are routinely issued oversized boots, gloves that reduce dexterity and overalls designed for male body types.
But the most absurd — and dangerous — failure lies in the continued issuing of one-piece overalls.
To use the toilet, women must strip down completely, often in environments that lack private or female-designated restrooms. This not only strips them of dignity, it also exposes them to the risk of assault.
What makes it worse is that alternatives do already exist. Two-piece PPE suits, commonly known as conti suits, are available and far more practical for women. Yet for reasons that remain unclear, these are rarely issued.
Instead, women are forced to navigate unsafe environments in gear designed with no thought to their needs. It’s completely avoidable and highlights a quick-win opportunity to increase participation by women in these sectors.
This isn’t just about discomfort. It’s about safety, hygiene and basic human respect.
A 2022 report by the Minerals Council South Africa found that only 12% of the mining and energy workforce is female, with many women reporting injuries, long-term health risks and humiliation directly linked to poorly designed PPE.
And the danger doesn’t stop there. Gender-based violence (GBV) is an ever-present threat. Nearly 40% of women in these sectors have experienced some form of GBV in the workplace, often in remote, unmonitored locations.
One woman recounted how a male colleague waited for her to remove her PPE before attacking her — a horrifying reminder that what’s supposed to protect can become a weapon of vulnerability when women are ignored in design and planning.
PPE is supposed to be the first line of defence in the workplace. Instead, for too many women it’s the first sign that they were never meant to be here in the first place.
Since I learnt about this fundamental issue in the energy sector, I have spoken to a number of organisations, individuals and key thinkers on designing a solution to this very real problem. We need to promote greater access for women in these traditionally male-dominated sectors, and we can start with something basic.
Hygiene and functionality
I propose a collaboration between manufacturers and energy companies to co-develop ergonomic PPE designed specifically for women. This includes properly sized boots and gloves, contoured protective gear and crucially, issuing two-piece conti suits that allow women to use the toilet safely and discreetly.
Hygiene and functionality must be central to design, not an afterthought. If the market isn’t supplying it, it’s time to demand it.
While one-piece overalls may have once been justified on safety grounds in high-risk environments, modern two-piece conti suits now offer equivalent protection when properly designed. Yet, they remain the exception, not the norm.
This is not about safety regulations; it’s about adapting PPE policy to reflect the realities of a truly diverse workforce.
The absence of facilities for women is not a minor oversight — it’s a structural hazard. Energy companies must ensure secure changing rooms and toilets for women at all sites, regardless of size or remoteness.
If PPE design puts women at risk in these settings, then infrastructure must adapt too. No woman should have to choose between safety and her ability to work.
Government and large energy companies can and should use their procurement muscle to drive change. I will be working on developing standards within the Department of Electricity and Energy for the energy sector, and I will appeal to my colleagues in Employment and Labour to develop matching standards for all sectors.
While we can promote compliance, labour inspectors at worksites can go a long way to ensuring compliance.
This change also reflects the need for women’s voices to be heard at senior leadership levels by placing more women in decision-making roles and ensuring that their input has impact throughout the value chain — not as symbols, but as system-shapers.
To ensure success, this initiative needs men to be partners for change, engaged as active supporters and champions of gender-inclusive safety reform. Their role in shifting workplace culture is vital.
When men advocate for safer, more respectful environments, the message lands differently, more powerfully. A safer space for women is a more efficient, productive and humane workplace for all.
I would like to invite all stakeholders in the energy and manufacturing space to join this project to make our workplaces safer and more inclusive so that women can feel at home in environments that accommodate their diverse bodies and life stages.
Let’s make PPE that men and women alike look forward to wearing, reflects local design and is even made locally. Let’s make locally designed and locally manufactured PPE part of the Just Energy Transition.
I’ve always said that there is no problem that South Africans can’t find a solution for, and I look forward to solving this fundamental problem with all the strength, talent, and dedication that our diverse society holds. DM