BHP Group, a mining company has announced it would dissolve certain global teams and shift their responsibilities, such as planning, environmental management, and heritage protection, to management at the asset level. This decision affects BHP’s operational sites in Australia and the Americas.
The move follows concerns raised by Mike Henry, CEO, BHP, regarding the lack of productivity improvements and the high costs associated with the Australian workforce. BHP, which has over 80,000 employees globally, hopes these changes will streamline operations and enhance efficiency.
BHP didn’t specify the exact number of jobs affected, but the Australian Financial Review reported cuts in roles linked to specific divisions such as planning and technical aspects, as well as health, safety and environmental units. A BHP spokesperson stated that these changes aim to improve workflow alignment and decision-making speed.
Under the new structure, each operational asset will have authority over decisions regarding health, safety, environment, planning, heritage management, decarbonisation and rehabilitation.
Furthermore, BHP is restructuring warehousing and logistics roles to be managed locally, and national teams will oversee operational decarbonisation efforts in each country. Group-level teams will continue to oversee health, safety, security, sustainability, social value and maintenance standards.
This restructuring aligns with BHP’s ongoing operations, which have faced challenges due to increased Indonesian supply leading to price declines.
