Harassment Report: Extensive sexual harassment, racism and bullying in the world’s second largest mining company

An external appraiser report reveals that employees of the British-Australian mining company Rio Tinto have suffered from widespread racism, bullying and sexual harassment.

Rio Tinto is the world’s second largest mining company, producing iron ore, copper, diamonds and gold, among other things.

In a survey of mining workplace culture, nearly half of the workers who responded said they had been bullied, according to Reuters. Racism was also common in many areas.

21 respondents reported rape, attempted rape, or sexual violence.

Thirty percent of female workers and 7 percent of men reported experiencing sexual harassment in the workplace.

CEO of a mining company Jakob Stausholm said the results were shocking, and promised the company would implement all 26 of the recommendations proposed in the report, Reuters says.

The report was drafted by a former Australian commissioner for sex discrimination Elizabeth Broderick.

Rio Tinto began an investigation in March last year. More than 10,000 employees responded to the survey, nearly a quarter of the company’s 45,000 employees.

The mining company promises to create a safe and inclusive work environment and increase diversity in the company. It also promised to ensure that the company’s remote mining facilities are safe and make it easier for staff to report unacceptable behavior.

Less than two years ago, in connection with a mine expansion, Rio Tinto blasted an indigenous sanctuary in Australia with traces of human settlement over 46,000 years ago. The company apologized for what happened and its top management had to resign.

The Norwegian Oil Fund abandoned its investment in Rio Tinto for ethical reasons in 2008. At the time, the Oil Fund was particularly concerned about the environmental impact of the mining company’s operations in Indonesia.