Sexual harassment class actions launched against BHP and Rio Tinto in Australia

Melbourne — Global mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto are facing class actions alleging widespread and systemic sexual harassment at Australian mine sites, law firm JGA Saddler said on Wednesday.

JGA Saddler said women who spoke out about the harassment were allegedly discriminated against by the miners and that it expects “thousands of female workers” at the two companies to join the class actions.

BHP issued a statement on Wednesday saying it apologised to anyone who has ever experienced any form of harassment at BHP.

“Sexual harassment has no place in our workplaces or indeed anywhere. We are committed to providing a safe and respectful workplace for everyone,” said BHP.

A Rio Tinto spokesperson said the miner was aware that a claim had been filed in the Federal Court on Wednesday.

“We treat all such claims with the utmost seriousness. We do not tolerate any form of sexual harassment or sex-based harassment. We take all concerns about workplace safety, culture and breaches of our values, or our code of conduct extremely seriously,” the spokesperson said.

In 2022, a Western Australia state government review into abuse at mining sites found unsafe working conditions for women in the industry, who had to frequently deal with sexual harassment and sexual assault.

“BHP and Rio Tinto have sent female staff to these sites knowing there was a high risk of personal danger, and then punished them with demotion, dismissal or discrimination when they reported it,” JGA Saddler lawyer Joshua Aylward said in a statement.

The class actions are being funded by litigation financier Omni Bridgeway.

The lead applicant in the class action against Rio Tinto, who JGA Saddler said has requested to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, alleged she suffered sexual harassment weekly while working as a security guard on Rio Tinto’s Australian sites.

“I was sent unsolicited sexually explicit messages, videos and pictures from a colleague including pictures and videos of him masturbating in his on-site room. Rio Tinto allowed him to resign but after my complaint I was overlooked for opportunities to upskill,” she said in a statement detailing her allegations.

The lead BHP applicant, who requested anonymity for the same reason, listed incidents of harassment in a statement and said she was often afraid to report the abuse.

“There have been times I haven’t reported an incident for fear of what might happen to my career, my job and my personal safety,” she said.

The class actions were previously reported by the country’s national broadcaster, ABC.

Reuters