A mine worker employed at BHP’s Olympic Dam is suing the company after she was sacked for allegedly harassing a co-worker on social media for their apparent failure to self isolate on returning from a trip interstate at the start of the first wave of COVID-19 cases in Australia.
BHP has successfully appealed a Fair Work Commission decision that found the mining giant had unfairly dismissed a worker after she placed a sex toy in a co-worker’s baggage at airport security and posed for a revealing photo at work.
BHP has failed in a bid to shut down a class action over the Fundao dam failure pending criminal proceedings in Brazil, with a judge ruling the mining giant would not be prejudiced if the case proceeded for now.
BHP Billiton must pay $125 million in added taxes after the High Court struck down its appeal in a dispute with the Australian Tax Office over taxes on income from its Singapore marketing hub.
A subsidiary of BHP Billiton can’t get its hands on underwriting documents in its case against Lloyd’s of London and Berkley Insurance, which are being sued by the mining giant for over $36 million after allegedly substandard equipment was installed at its Olympic Dam Mine.
The Fair Work Commission has found that BHP’s decision to fire a mine worker and self-professed ‘larrikin’ for a single crude joke was unjustified, but the employee’s attempts to throw other staff “under the bus” during an internal investigation were valid reasons for the dismissal.