Sofia Pereda

Chilean miner's daughter who pioneered women's labor rights in Latin America's mining industry

Sofia Pereda (1842-1912) was a Chilean labor rights activist whose advocacy for women working in the nitrate mines of northern Chile led to groundbreaking legal protections. Born to a mining family in the Atacama Desert, she witnessed firsthand the dangerous working conditions and systemic discrimination faced by female laborers in the booming saltpeter industry. Her 1868 pamphlet Voices from the Mines became a seminal text in Latin American labor history, exposing the exploitation of women and children in mining operations.

Pereda's most significant achievement was the 1873 Mining Labor Code amendment, which prohibited child labor under age 14 and mandated equal pay for women performing the same work as men. These reforms were the first of their kind in the Americas and influenced later labor legislation across the continent. She organized the first women's mutual aid societies in Copiapó, providing healthcare and legal support to mining families.

Her work intersected with the broader feminist movement led by figures like Berta Davila, though Pereda's focus on economic justice gave her initiatives unique relevance. The Chilean Mining Museum now features a permanent exhibit on her activism, highlighting her role in shaping modern labor rights. Contemporary scholars note her contributions were obscured by patriarchal historiography until recent feminist scholarship recovered her legacy.