The Community Development and Justice Standing Committee of the Parliament of Western Australia (Committee) has tabled their report ‘Enough is enough: sexual harassment against women in the FIFO mining industry' (Report). The Report makes it clear that broad-sweeping reform in the resources and mining industry is needed to address the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace with employers called to take the lead decisively and quickly.
Overview
The Report was released last week following an inquiry by the Committee into the sexual harassment against women in the FIFO mining industry (Inquiry). The Inquiry was triggered by a series of public reports of sexual assault and harassment in FIFO workplaces and increasing public concern as to the prevalence of sexual harassment across certain industries and sectors.
Under the Inquiry’s Terms of Reference, the Committee was tasked to consider, among other matters, the level of understanding of sexual harassment in FIFO workplaces, whether existing workplace practices, legislation, regulations and policies adequately protected against sexual harassment in FIFO workplaces and what actions were being undertaken by industry and government which may be looked upon as examples of ‘good practice’ moving forward.
Findings & recommendations
The Report found that sexual harassment has long been, and continues to be, prevalent across the resources and FIFO industries. Specifically, these industries have the major risk factors for sexual harassment in the workplace including gender inequality and power imbalance.
The Report also found that sexual harassment has historically been treated as a human resources issue by both the regulator and companies in the industry. Despite this, the Report makes it clear that sexual harassment is a work health and safety issue which must be treated accordingly including with specialist expertise support.
A total of 79 findings were made and 24 recommendations tabled in the Report. The recommendations are wide ranging, extensive and traverse industry, organisational, legal and regulatory change that is required to address this issue.
Below are some of the key recommendations relevant to employers operating in the resources and FIFO industries.
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Recommendation 2
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Mining and resources companies need to ensure there are serious repercussions, including dismissal, for any person who attempts to seek sexual favours for advantage and that all proper legal actions are taken against them. This recommendation was made in response to a finding by the Committee that poor culture, gender inequality and power disparity in the workplace has contributed to sexual harassment, including behaviour such as managers and supervisors seeking sexual favours from employees in return for promotion or security of employment. |
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Recommendation 3
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The industry needs to explore ways to prevent perpetrators of serious sexual harassment finding employment on other sites and with other companies, including the potential introduction of an industry-wide worker register. The Inquiry found that even where individuals had been found to have behaved unacceptably, there is a practice of ‘moving them on’ rather than dismissing them and allowing them to continue in the industry. The Report contemplated whether an industry-wide register of sexual harassment perpetrators would ensure that organisations are aware of such individuals who have changed worksites or employers after their offending. However, it noted that whether this could be implemented in practice would require careful consideration of matters such as confidentiality and natural justice for registered individuals. |
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Recommendation 5
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Mining companies need to improve gender balance in their workplaces including a greater effort to increase female participation at supervisor and management levels. The Report acknowledges that gender imbalance has been a historical reality in the resources and mining sector, and while there have been efforts to address this, women continue to remain in the minority. Further, the lack of women in senior supervisor and management roles increases the risk of harassment towards such women, particularly because their appointment may be perceived to be tokenistic. |
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Recommendation 6
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Mining and resources sector work to reduce risks exacerbated by high rates of labour-hire and sub-contracting. It was acknowledged the high dependency on labour hire and contractors in the mining and resources sector resulted in blurred lines of responsibility, increased power of managers and supervisor with regard to career certainty and problems with chains of reporting for harassment and bullying. The Report suggested including establishing clear requirements and guidelines for all contractors in respect of sexual harassment. |
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Recommendation 16
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Mining companies to establish internal and external options for reporting and obtaining support for incidents of sexual harassment and assault, and that all employees must be informed of these options. The Inquiry heard that many concerns were raised about the reporting of sexual harassment and the lack of access to support networks. This included a distrust and lack of confidence by employees in existing hierarchical management structures. This was found to be a barrier to reporting of sexual harassment incidents. |
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Recommendation 20
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Timely implementation of the recommendations of the Law Reform Commission’s review of the Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (WA). For example, reversing the onus of proof on victims of sexual harassment; removing the requirement that a victim must have suffered disadvantage in connection with their employment to meet the definition of sexual harassment. The Report found these changes were needed to remedy the outdated nature of the current legislative framework and to reframe the issue as one that is the responsibility of the employer requiring positive action. |
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Recommendation 21
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Introduction of a consistent and comprehensive definition of sexual harassment in the WA regulatory framework. The Report regarded the failure to include a definition of sexual harassment in the Work Health Safety Act 2020 (WA) (WHS Act) as a ‘missed opportunity’ and reflected the neglect in recognising sexual harassment as a distinct issue requiring targeted intervention. |
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Recommendation 22
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A review of the educational and reactive approach of regulatory bodies to sexual harassment A more proactive, punitive approach towards instances of sexual harassment was recommended in the Report. Improvement and prohibition notices were acknowledged in the Report as influential tools that could be more regularly employed by regulatory bodies. |
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The full version of the Report can be found here.
What does the Report mean for industry participants?
The Report concluded that organisations are ultimately responsible for what occurs in their workplaces and must set standards of behaviour, hold people to account and encourage the change that is necessary to ensure their workplaces are safe.
It is clear that it will no longer be sufficient for organisations to rely on reactionary measures to address the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace. Strong leadership, transparency, and risk assessment were all important ingredients identified in the Report to develop a ‘holistic approach’ that promotes long term cultural change.
As an immediate step, employers and organisations must be thinking about what they can do to implement the recommendations made by the Report and direct their attention towards reforms which encourage a long-term cultural shift in their workplaces as well as ensuring they discharge their positive duty to take all reasonably practicable measures to minimise work health and safety risks in the workplace, including sexual harassment.
Certainly the release of WorkSafe WA’s recently updated Information Sheet on Gendered Violence indicates there is already momentum on the part of regulators to ensure employers and business are reviewing their safety management plans and policies to protect against sexual harassment as a key work health and safety issue.
