EDITORIAL: Gold Fields’ welcome workplace report a must-read for all corporates
The findings raise vital questions for an industry that has been hierarchical and male-dominated
Early in 2022, global miner Rio Tinto released the findings of a survey showing 21 of its women employees had been raped and many more had been sexually harassed over a five-year period. It made global headlines, which prompted further revelations across the industry and put issues about the treatment of women firmly on the table for the industry. But that survey was not just about exclusionary and discriminatory practices against women, and that is even more so in the case of the “Respectful Workplace” study that Gold Fields released last week.
The two in-depth global studies, both of which were conducted by independent expert Elizabeth Broderick and her team, focused on workplace culture much more broadly. Their findings raise important questions for an industry that has historically been hierarchical and male-dominated, with worksites that often are in remote areas where it is hard to hold managers and supervisors accountable for their behaviour. But as Broderick has made...
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