Fortescue Metals Group is sliding into a corporate governance nightmare.
On Monday the company refused to answer detailed questions from The Australian about when it first received an anonymous letter about executive chairman Andrew Forrest’s alleged relationship with an employee; when it called in lawyers from Seyfarth Shaw; when that report was delivered; and when it was considered by the board.
Fortescue also refused to answer questions about whether the “full access to electronic records, documents, employees, information and resources” included access to Dr Forrest’s personal messaging services, such as WhatsApp and Signal, or those of any staff member mentioned in the complaint.
Instead Fortescue referred The Australian back to its “fulsome” statement about the investigation – a secret until Sunday – and said it had no further comment. That statement simply said Fortescue’s directors had become “aware of an anonymous letter” concerning Dr Forrest’s behaviour, and that the Seyfarth Shaw investigation found none of the matters were substantiated and made no adverse findings.
But the timing of that complaint, and of the report, matters.
In December 2021 The Australian published a series of stories detailing the chaotic workplace that was Dr Forrest’s green energy arm, Fortescue Future Industries, including the direct role the Fortescue chairman – then a non-executive director of the company – was playing in management decisions, including hiring and firing. Even then rumours that Dr Forrest was involved in a relationship with a staff member were circulating. The Australian approached the mining magnate’s public relations staff in February of 2022 about the chatter, and his relationship with Nicola Forrest – and were told there was no truth to the chatter.
None of those rumours have ever been substantiated with any evidence, it must be said.
Since then Fortescue has become even more chaotic. The overwhelming majority of the company’s senior executive team has changed since then, with Dr Forrest returning as an executive director in May 2022. It took almost a year for Fortescue to find a new permanent boss for its iron ore arm, after chief executive Elizabeth Gaines flagged her intention to resign in late 2021. She, too, has since returned as an executive director. This month Nicola and Andrew Forrest finally confirmed – after queries from multiple media outlets over the last 18 months – that they had separated.
That separation was effectively revealed in a market disclosure detailing changes in the way the family’s Fortescue shares were held, made on June 20.
On June 9, however, Fortescue non-executive director Jenn Morris – also the chair of its remuneration and people committee – quit the company’s board.
The Australian understands the anonymous letter did not just include allegations of Dr Forrest having a relationship with a staff member, but that that relationship had influenced their promotion and salary – matters that could and should have come to the attention of the remuneration committee. Although Fortescue says Seyfarth Shaw found none of the matters the subject of the complaint have been substantiated. On Monday The Australian asked Fortescue whether Ms Morris’s resignation – or its timing – related to the complaint or delivery of the Seyfarth Shaw report.
There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Ms Morris. But Fortescue’s refusal to answer questions on the matter leaves open the question of whether she quit because she was dissatisfied with the conduct of the investigation, or its outcome – or for entirely unrelated reasons. Without answers to questions on what access Seyfarth Shaw was given to private communications, it is difficult to judge how thorough their work could have been.
But Fortescue’s recent history also includes allegations it has ignored and even punished those that complained of poor workplace behaviour, given last year’s court case – since settled – from a former senior manager that took action for unfair dismissal after allegedly being sacked for making a complaint about bullying and harassment in the workplace.
POSTSCRIPT: After this story was first published online, a spokeswoman for Fortescue contacted The Australian to respond to our question about whether Ms Morris’ resignation - or its timing - was related to the letter about Dr Forrest’s behaviour, or the delivery of the Seyfarth Shaw report.
“Absolutely not,” she said.
The Fortescue spokeswoman also said it was not accurate to characterise the complaint as a “whistleblower report”, saying an “anonymous letter was received, as outlined in our statement”.
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