The Australian mining sector has become notorious for sexual harassment, with women disproportionality the victims. Studies show almost two thirds of Australian female mining workers having experienced sexual harassment. For fly-in fly-out (FIFO) workers, it’s even worse – with one study showing 74% of female workers have experienced harassment.
As you will read in this article, sexual assault, unwelcome propositions, sex dolls, misogynistic slurs and exposing of genitals are just some forms of harassment female mining workers have to endure.
This quote, shared by a female worker later in this article, is the widespread image many have of the mining sector. The sexual harassment problem is so bad that in late 2024, two class action lawsuits were made against mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto.
Thousands of women who worked at the companies in the last 20 years are eligible to join the lawsuits. The law firm behind the lawsuits said they have been “inundated” with emails from alleged victims.
In this article, we cover the alarming statistics about sexual harassment in Australia’s mining sector, detailing the shocking real-life accounts of abuse. We also look at the misogynistic ‘old boys’ culture of ‘skimpies’ in a Western Australian mining town.
Finally, we share the disturbing experiences of the women who have brought legal action against the industry’s biggest players.
There are over 324,000 Australians working in our mining sector, who are of a median age of 41 years old. Just 21% of the sector is female. Despite making up such a small number of workers, women are disproportionally the victims of harassment in mining.
In a 2022 Australian Human Rights Commission survey, 32% of mining workers reported experiencing sexual harassment in the previous five years. This rate was just below the national average across all sectors of 33%.
However, when these figures are examined by gender, they paint a very stark picture of the dangers posed to women in mining. The survey found that 62% of women in the mining industry experienced sexual harassment. This compared to just 25% of men.
The survey also found that male-dominated sectors like mining and construction tended to see victims sexually harassed by more than one perpetrator. In both these sectors, the mean number of perpetrators per harassment incident was 2.2.
Also unique to mining was that harassment took place in a social area for employees, like a lunchroom, at a much higher rate than in other sectors. In the mining sector, 33% of incidents took place in such a setting – way above the average of 23% across all sectors.
The Australian Human Rights Commission survey also found that victims in the mining sector were some of the least likely to make a formal report or complaint about an incident. Just 2% of victims made a formal complaint about their sexual harassment. Only victims in the wholesale trade industry had a lower likelihood of reporting incidents, with just 1% doing so.
In Western Australia, home to 61% of the nation’s mining sector, sexual harassment is particularly bad for female FIFO workers. The Western Australian Parliament’s 2022 report revealed that women constituted 74% of FIFO mining workers who reported sexual harassment in the previous five years.
The report said that there was “endemic” underreporting of incidents in Western Australia’s FIFO mining sector. In the foreword of the report, the chairperson of the state parliament’s inquiry into sexual harassment detailed a number of anonymised incidents. These paint a worrying picture of the problem in mining, with harassment taking the form of:
A female contractor was allegedly propositioned by a site supervisor who offered to suppress a safety investigation into a near-miss incident in exchange for sexual favors. The same woman also claimed she was told she needed to “get on her knees” to secure a permanent position with the mining company.
We often hear arguments that the culture within a workplace or industry can play a part in normalising or even encouraging sexual harassment. One particularly glaring aspect of the misogynistic culture that pervades the mining industry are ‘skimpies.’ These scantily clad ‘skimpy’ barmaids are a dubious tradition going back decades and indicative of the ‘old boys’ culture in the sector.
Skimpies most notably feature at the annual Diggers and Dealers Mining Forum, held annually in the Western Australian remote mining town of Kalgoorlie. While not officially part of the conference agenda, skimpies take centre stage at the boozy after-hours events where networking takes place.
Thanks to some Kalgoorlie venues having special licenses, skimpies are allowed to work “toppo” – or topless. The prospect of big tips seeing them fly in from east coast cities to pour beers and flirt with miners. On a good weekend, some earn up to $5,000.
Back in 2018, Diggers and Dealers chair Nick Giorgetta told the ABC that “there are no skimpies” at the annual Mining Forum. He added that delegates did not have to visit the venues where skimpies plied their trade.
However, the networking that takes place at these events is an important part of the Forum, albeit not officially part of it. A female Geologist told the ABC that networking events were a critical chance to meet other professionals. She said that while she was attending a Kalgoorlie bar, “there was a girl with naked breasts.” The Geologist said that this was not the sort of “professional experience that I wish to have.”
The founder of Women in Mining WA told the ABC that Diggers and Dealers lives up to a professional standard. However, she said that the after-hours networking events at Kalgoorlie’s pubs give the conference and the mining sector “a bad name.” She said that the sector is “seen as a dirty, male-dominated industry.”
Prior to the 2022 Western Australia parliamentary report, in the previous year it launched an inquiry into the state’s sexual harassment problem in the mining sector. A survey run by the inquiry revealed various forms of sexual harassment experienced by mining workers. This showed a huge difference between the experiences of male and female workers:
In December 2024, two class actions were filed in the Federal Court of Australia against mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto. The separate legal actions claimed that there has been a deeply entrenched culture of abuse at the companies’ worksites for the past two decades. They alleged that BHP and Rio Tinto fostered environments where female staff endured systemic sexual harassment and gender discrimination.
The lawsuits were filed by Brisbane firm JGA Saddler on behalf of two anonymous women. They invited every woman who worked at Rio Tinto and BHP during the last twenty years to join the class actions.
The lead applicant in the case against BHP claimed she was subjected to escalating “pranks” and sexual harassment. The woman worked as a truck driver in Queensland and New South Wales. She alleged that male coworkers would turn off the electricity to her accommodation. She also claimed some pasted toothpaste on her truck’s door or disabled her car’s battery.
In one sexual harassment incident, she alleged a BHP contractor urinated on her after she repeatedly rebuffed his sexual advances. She said his advances included visits to her accommodation where he asked to be invited in for drinks. The woman also described being sexually harassed over the two-way radio and witnessing a BHP employee defecate in front of her.
After making a complaint about the contractor’s behaviour, her contract was ended, and she was never contacted about her complaint. She noted a constant fear of reporting incidents due to potential career repercussions or threats to her personal safety.
The woman also claimed she was called a “c**t” and “p***k tease” by a male coworker who punched the window of her truck while she was resting her head on it. The coworker also said that she was there “just to get laid.”
The lead applicant in the case against Rio Tinto, a FIFO security guard at Western Australian mine sites, alleged she endured weekly inappropriate comments of a sexual nature. This included the likes of “I need you to come back to my room” and “you can arrest me anytime.”
She claimed that male coworkers would touch her inappropriately, rubbing themselves against her or touching her bottom or breasts as they passed. Amongst other forms of abuse reported to the media by other victims include videos of male workers masturbating. Also, comments like “rape is not rape if you are passed out.”
Since the lawsuits were actioned, JGA Saddler lawyer Joshua Aylward said he has been “inundated with emails” of those wanting to sign up to the sexual harassment lawsuits. He has personally spoken to hundreds of women in the last 18 months, many of whom feared workplace reprisal for speaking out. He told media that one woman, who was formerly an exotic dancer, said that “she had seen more penises in the mining industry.”
Sexual harassment in the workplace is unacceptable, and you have the right to take action. We at Australian Workplace Discrimination Representatives offer the specialist support you need to take a stand. For over 20 years, we’ve helped thousands of Australians understand their rights, navigate the claims process and secure financial redress.
Don’t wait. Speak to someone who understands – your call is 100% confidential and complimentary. Contact us us on 1800 333 666.
