Global mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto are facing class action lawsuits over allegations of widespread and systemic sexual harassment at their mine sites in Australia, law firm JGA Sadler (Saddler) announced on Wednesday, Reuters reports.
The law firm claims that women who have spoken out about harassment have allegedly been discriminated against by miners and expects “thousands of female workers” at the two companies to join the class action lawsuits, Reuters writes.
On Wednesday, BHP released a statement apologizing to anyone who has ever experienced any form of harassment at the company.
“Sexual harassment has no place in our workplaces or anywhere. We are committed to providing a safe workplace with respect for all,” BHP said, according to the media.
A Rio Tinto spokesman said the miner was aware that the lawsuit had been filed in Federal Court on Wednesday. “We take all such allegations very seriously. We do not tolerate any form of sexual harassment. We take all concerns about workplace safety, culture, and breaches of our values or our code of conduct extremely seriously,” the spokesman said, according to Reuters.
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“BHP and Rio Tinto sent female staff to these locations knowing that there was a high risk of personal danger, and then punished them with demotion, dismissal, or discrimination when they reported it,” said JGA Sadler lawyer Joshua Ellwood in a statement, according to the media.
The class actions are being funded by litigation financier Omni Bridgeway.
The lead applicant in the class action against Rio Tinto, who JGA Sadler said had asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, said she had endured sexual harassment on a weekly basis while working as security at Rio Tinto’s Australian sites, the media reports.
“A colleague sent me unwanted sexually explicit messages, videos, and images, including pictures and videos of him masturbating in his room. Rio Tinto allowed him to resign, but after my complaint, my request for an opportunity for advancement was ignored,” she said in a statement detailing her allegations, the media writes.
The lead BHP applicant, who sought anonymity for the same reason, cited incidents of harassment in a statement and said she was often afraid to report the abuse.
“There were times when I didn’t report an incident for fear of what might happen to my career, my job, and my personal safety,” she said.
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Source: Nova.rs, Photo: EPA-EFE:MICK TSIKAS