WorkSafe WA has issued Talison Lithium – a joint venture between American producer Albemarle and Chinese producer Tianqi Lithium Energy Australia – a workplace improvement notice because of psychosocial hazards at its Greenbushes lithium mine.
WorkSafe issued the notice on 20 August, after completing a psychosocial safety survey at the mine, Talison and WorkSafe spokespeople confirmed to Lithos on 7 October.
“[Talison acknowledges] the findings of [WorkSafe’s] psychosocial safety survey and the resulting improvement notice … The safety and wellbeing of our workforce has always been our priority, and continues to be so,” a company spokesperson said.
“A number of initiatives aimed at strengthening psychosocial safety were already underway before the improvement notice, with additional actions now being progressed through our Safety Improvement Plan,” they added.
Talison has created clearer behavioural expectations, increased team capacity, strengthened safety systems, and improved facilities to address WorkSafe’s safety concerns, according to the spokesperson. The company will do more work to improve workers’ felt experience, the spokesperson said.
Greenbushes staff have raised workplace safety concerns in recent years. In March 2025, Electrical Trades Union (ETU) workers launched a short work stoppage at the mine because of construction-related challenges.
“Electricians working on the construction of a third chemical-grade plant at the site have raised alarms over multiple safety issues,” ETU WA Secretary Adam Woodage said on 10 March 2025.
“The [ETU] stands firmly behind its members in prioritising safety above all else. We are committed to taking decisive action, including shutting down operations, when workplaces are deemed unsafe or when safety protocols are not strictly enforced,” Woodage added.
Greenbushes’ occupational injury frequency rate rose by 54% and 2% in 2024-25 and 2025-26, respectively, according to IGO, a part-owner of the mine. But safety interaction, hazard reporting, and event investigation indicators trended positively in 2025-26, IGO told investors in August.
Talison produced 1.4 million tonnes of lithium concentrate at Greenbushes in 2025-26, down from 1.5 million tonnes in 2024-25, IGO data show. It expects to produce 1.6 million to 1.8 million tonnes of Greenbushes concentrate in 2026-27.
By Avinash Govind