Vale SA was ordered Monday to pay 18.9 million reais (US$8.2 million) by a Brazilian labor court as a result of ignoring workplace safety and environmental policies that could have prevented the deaths of five workers over the course of the last few years at Vale's iron ore port in Maranhao.
Additionally, the court ruled that Vale will have to pay daily fines of up to 20 million reais (US$8.73 million) if the company fails to comply with a series of 31 corrective measures such as supplying drinking water to its workers, installing barriers at port facilities to prevent falls and implementing an environmental risk prevention program.