Workers' rights and wellbeing

Workers' rights and wellbeing

What’s good for our employees is good for us

Upholding workers' rights is both morally right and good business sense. But we're also aware that simply protecting workers' rights is not enough.

Modern life is stressful – the World Health Organization calls stress the "health epidemic of the 21st century". Many of our employees work away from loved ones and put in long hours, which can cause loneliness, anxiety and depression.

A healthy mind is a safe and productive mind. Engaged, healthy employees are more satisfied with their jobs. So our efforts to create better, healthier and more engaging workplaces are good for our employees and for us.

 

People walking along the road People walking along the road

Empowerment, engagement and extension

We don’t just uphold our employees’ rights – we want to empower them to bring their best selves to work. We support our employees by creating a culture of openness around mental wellbeing, by engaging in regular dialogue, and by offering flexible working options and practical benefits such as quality childcare. This helps them achieve balance between their personal and work lives, and to go home to their loved ones with a healthy mindset at the end of their working day.


Fostering fair workplaces

We are committed to providing safe and fair workplaces across all our operations, and encourage employees to speak up about their issues and concerns. Talk to Peggy is a confidential and independently operated whistleblowing programme that enables employees, suppliers, contractors and community members to anonymously report significant concerns about the business or behaviour of individuals. This includes suspicion around safety violations, human and workers' rights, or business integrity issues.

We train our leaders to understand mental health risks, and have established programmes that give employees access to the tools and support they need. Research suggests that when people do reach out for help, particularly in a work environment, they are more likely to approach friends and colleagues, rather than more formal support programmes. So networks like our Iron Ore business' peer support programme give our people another way to discuss troubles that arise.

The challenges ahead

Improving engagement with employees through open dialogue, effective support mechanisms and regular assessments – such as our biannual employee engagement survey – enables us to attract and retain a highly engaged, inclusive and diverse workforce as well as protecting workers' rights and enhancing their wellbeing.