Rio Tinto report reveals ‘systemic’ bullying and harassment

February 4, 2022

Anglo-Australian mining firm Rio Tinto has admitted to “systemic” bullying and sexism across its firm, according to an external report.

The review was conducted by Elizabeth Broderick, Australia’s former national sex discrimination commissioner.

Jakob Stausholm, chief executive officer at Rio Tinto, who commissioned the report, said the findings were “deeply disturbing” and offered his “heartfelt apology to every team member, past or present, who has suffered as a result of these behaviours”.

Broderick said that most women experienced “everyday sexism” which included being left out of meetings and not being provided with a women’s toilet.

In addition, 21 women reported an actual or attempted rape or sexual assault in the past five years.

“Sexual harassment and everyday sexism occur at unacceptable rates. Racism is common across a number of areas,” said Broderick in the report. “Bullying is systemic, experienced by almost half of the survey respondents.”

Broderick and her team received responses from 10,000 of Rio’s 45,000 employees, as well conducting 109 group listening sessions and 85 confidential one-on-one meetings.

The report did not specify if the reported assaults had occurred in “fly-in, fly-out” (Fifo) camps, though rates of sexual harassment were higher at these sites. Harassment was experienced by 43% of women, while 28% of women reported sexual harassment across the entire company.

“Women at Fifo worksites spoke of eating alone in their room to avoid harassment in the dining hall and the gym,” the report stated, “of avoiding being out after dark; of bad lighting and poor security; and of harassing and even threatening behaviour from male colleagues when they were walking to their accommodation after work.”

Rio Tinto said it accepted the report’s 26 recommendations and would focus its action on leadership and diversity, aiming to improve camp facilities and make it easier for people to “call out individual behaviours”.

This story comes as the latest in a line of Rio Tinto scandals.