Rio Tinto Review Finds Systemic Bullying, Sexual Harassment and Racism Across Workplaces

Summary

An independent review of Rio Tinto's workplace culture published in February 2022 identified widespread and systemic problems involving bullying, sexual harassment, racism and other forms of discrimination across the global mining company. The eight-month review was conducted by former Australian Sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick and her team and commissioned by Rio Tinto itself. More than 10,000 employees contributed through an online survey, more than 100 group listening sessions, 85 confidential individual sessions and nearly 140 written submissions. Rio Tinto – External review of workplace culture: https://www.riotinto.com/news/releases/2022/rio-tinto-releases-external-review-of-workplace-culture Full Everyday Respect Report: https://www.riotinto.com/-/media/Content/Documents/Sustainability/People/RT-Everyday-respect-report.pdf The review concluded that bullying and sexism were systemic across Rio Tinto worksites. Almost half of respondents reported experiencing bullying during the previous five years. Sexual harassment was also widespread. 28.2% of women and 6.7% of men surveyed reported experiencing sexual harassment at work during the previous five years. Rates were particularly high among younger women: the report found that 34.4% of women under 25 and 38.7% of women aged 25–34 had experienced sexual harassment. Most seriously, 21 women reported experiencing actual or attempted rape or sexual assault during the five-year period examined by the review. The report also identified serious underreporting. Only approximately one in eight employees who had experienced sexual harassment reported their most recent incident. Among women who experienced sexual harassment, 83% did not report their most recent experience, according to the review. Racism was another significant problem. Among Australian employees identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, 39.8% of men and 31.8% of women reported experiencing racism. Employees interviewed for the review described racism as persistent across multiple Rio Tinto locations, and the report found a perception among some workers that racist behaviour had become normalised in parts of the company. Rio Tinto – Everyday Respect programme and reports: https://www.riotinto.com/sustainability/respect-inclusion-diversity/everyday-respect Company response: Rio Tinto publicly accepted the seriousness of the findings. Then-CEO Jakob Stausholm described them as deeply disturbing, apologized to current and former employees who had suffered from the behaviour and expressed shame and regret about the extent of bullying, sexual harassment and racism within the company. Rio Tinto committed to implementing all 26 recommendations contained in the independent review. However, an independent 2024 Progress Review showed that the problem had not disappeared despite the reforms. Rio Tinto reported that 39% of respondents had experienced bullying during the previous 12 months, compared with 31% in the earlier survey. 7% reported sexual harassment, unchanged from the comparable 2021 figure, while 7% reported racism. Most seriously, in the 2024 review eight people reported actual or attempted sexual assault or rape during the previous 12 months, compared with five in 2021. Another 32 people reported pressure or requests for sex or sexual acts. The majority of people reporting these experiences were women. Rio Tinto – 2024 independent Progress Review: https://www.riotinto.com/en/news/releases/2024/rio-tinto-releases-findings-of-external-progress-review-on-workplace-culture Rio Tinto said the follow-up nevertheless showed evidence of cultural improvement. Around half of respondents perceived improvements in bullying, sexual harassment and racism, employees were more empowered to speak up, and the company had largely implemented the original 26 recommendations. Rio Tinto acknowledged, however, that employees continued to experience unacceptable and harmful behaviour and announced additional measures covering leadership, training, workforce diversity and reporting. In December 2024, Rio Tinto was also named in an Australian class-action lawsuit alleging widespread and systemic sexual harassment and discrimination at mine sites. The allegations include claims that women suffered adverse treatment after reporting harassment. These claims are allegations and should be distinguished from the findings of Rio Tinto's independent reviews. Rio Tinto said it treats such claims with the utmost seriousness and does not tolerate sexual or sex-based harassment. Reuters – BHP and Rio Tinto face sexual-harassment class actions: https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/bhp-rio-tinto-face-sexual-harassment-class-actions-australia-2024-12-11/ Key facts: More than 10,000 Rio Tinto employees participated in the original independent review; almost half reported experiencing bullying during the previous five years; 28.2% of women and 6.7% of men reported sexual harassment; 21 women reported actual or attempted rape or sexual assault; only about one in eight people experiencing sexual harassment reported their most recent incident; 39.8% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and 31.8% of women surveyed in Australia reported racism; and Rio Tinto acknowledged that bullying, sexual harassment and racism represented serious problems within its workplaces. A second independent review published in 2024 found harmful behaviour was continuing, including eight reports of actual or attempted sexual assault or rape during the preceding year. The evidence is particularly significant because these findings did not originate solely from litigation, media allegations or an outside activist group. Rio Tinto commissioned the independent investigation, published its findings, accepted their seriousness, apologized to affected workers and implemented a company-wide reform programme in response. The 2024 follow-up nevertheless demonstrated that serious bullying, sexual harassment, racism and sexual violence continued to be reported within Rio Tinto workplaces.