Aussie billionaire doesn’t want staff to go out and get coffee

A billionaire boss who runs a successful business in Australia has revealed the tactics he has come up with to keep workers “captive”.

Billionaire mining boss Chris Ellison has declared he doesn’t want his workers going on coffee breaks, as he “wants to hold them captive all day long” to improve output.

The 67-year-old managing director of Mineral Resources made the announcement during his company’s financial results presentation and it was posted on YouTube on the 29th of August.

In the meeting, Mr Ellison first discussed how the company was trying to improve employee retention, saying there was now a “really big focus on mental health”.

He said the company now had nine psychologists on the payroll, with seven of those working in the fly-in and fly-out areas of the business.

He then pivoted to discussing workers at the company’s head office, explaining he doesn’t want anyone popping out during the working day.

“I want to hold them captive all day long,” Mr Ellison said.

“I don’t want them leaving the building. I don’t want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee. We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that cost.”

Mr Ellison enjoying a coffee. Picture: Colin Murty/The Australian

He is originally from New Zealand and owns a $50 million dollar home in Perth. Picture: Colin Murty/The Australian

Mr Ellison then explained that to keep workers inside the building and not “wandering out around lunch time”, the company has invested in a restaurant, a gym, and other facilities that keep them “glued in there”.

Mr Ellison’s desire to keep workers in the office also comes with perks for staff. The head office offers $3 coffees, subsidised meals, has a gym that only costs $5 a week to use, and even has a free GP clinic.

The managing director went onto to reveal he’d also canned any option for employees to work from home, saying it impacts businesses’ bottom line.

“I have a no working from home policy. I wish everyone else would get on board with that. The sooner, the better,” he said.

“The industry can’t afford it. We can’t have people working three days a week and picking up five days a week pay.”

The recruitment expert also pointed out the company offers many different perks to suit different types of employees.

“There’s so much he is offering to cater and full credit to him. It is up for people to choose if they want to be part of that or not,” she said.

Ms Calder said if not being able to work from home was a deal breaker for employees, well, there are plenty of other options.

But Mr Ellison’s unique way of managing staff wasn’t well received by everyone. The financial result presentation has been posted on YouTube and not all viewers seemed to be a fan.

“Horrific,” someone wrote.

“Wow,” another commented.

“Train wreck inbound,” someone else wrote.

“Timed toilet breaks too?” another asked.

He announced the company would be putting in an affordable daycare. Picture: Colin Murty/The Australian

While Mr Ellison’s work-from-home policy might sound extreme to those who enjoy a home office, the majority of workers still don’t work from home, according to The Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Data from August 2023 found that only 37 per cent of Australians work from home regularly.

Last year, more than 50,000 Australians participated in news.com.au’s Great Aussie Debate survey, and one of the questions asked was whether participants were less productive when they worked from home.

Nearly a third of respondents, 30 per cent, said their productivity depended on how they were feeling on the day.

However, almost the same number of respondents (29.2 per cent) claimed they were “much more productive” when working at home.

Meanwhile 22.4 per cent, admitted they were less productive, and also did household chores such as laundry throughout the day.