Every woman who’s worked for mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto over the past 20 years will be invited to join a class action alleging sexual harrassment.
A Brisbane law firm has reportedly launched this class action, led by two unnamed women, alleging female employees have been exposed to appalling sexual abuse over many years.
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The allegations include male miners groping, urinating on or defecating in front of women, sending unsolicited sexual videos, verbal abuse, stealing underwear, videoing change rooms and more.
BHP has said “sexual harassment has no place in our workplace” and apologised “unreservedly to anyone who has ever experienced any form of harassment at BHP”.
BHP only recently agreed to pay more than 40 billion dollars in compensation over the collapse of a dam in Brazil which killed 19 people.
Rio Tinto released a report last month which found bullying and harassment were common at its sites. It said it treats claims with the utmost seriousness and encourages people to report harmful behaviour.
This comes after a massive parliamentary inquiry report out of Western Australia where the big miners had to reveal dozens of sexual harassment claims made by their staff.
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