Mining giant BHP has admitted it has underpaid almost 30,000 workers, dating back to 2010, and it will cost more than $400 million to make amends.
“There are approximately 28,500 affected current and former employees with an average of six leave days in total that have been incorrectly deducted from affected employees,” the company told the ASX.
BHP’s Australian president Geraldine Slattery has apologised to employees affected by the errors.
“This is not good enough and falls short of the standards we expect at BHP,” she said.
BHP said it has self-reported to the Fair Work Ombudsman, and will contact current and former employees who have been affected.
BHP’s admission is the latest in a string of corporate underpayment incidents reported in Australia in recent years.
Last year, Woolworths announced it had underpaid workers by $144 million, on top of $427 million it had already disclosed.
In 2021, the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) began legal action against Coles supermarkets, alleging the chain underpaid more than 7,500 salaried employees a total of $115 million.