7″ January “2023” https://www.Theguardian.com
Female workers tell of exploitation and sexual assault at frankincense warehouse supplying US essential oils company
I’m not speaking metaphorically – a bottle of doTERRA essential oil can change the world,” says David Stirling, a mild, clean-cut, middle-aged man. His largely female audience cheers and whistles, as if for a celebrity. Stirling, then CEO and co-founder of doTERRA, a Utah-based multi-level marketing company that sells essential oils, is making his opening remarks in September 2021 to the packed Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City.
In a setting reminiscent of a megachurch, Stirling’s soft-spoken voice echoes. He reminds the audience that the world needs healers more than ever – “and that’s you”, he says, to raucous applause. He quotes CS Lewis, speaks of miracles and says he’s seen people turn to doTERRA in their lowest moments. People cry.
Anjanette DeCarlo, a sustainability consultant who formerly worked as a contractor for doTERRA, corroborates part of the woman’s account. She says she was in the town near Erigavo, attending a focus group hosted by Asli Maydi, and that evening she was urged to leave so the men could have a party. When she asked if she could join in, she says an employee told her: “No, you can’t stay for this kind of party.” The next day, they smelled of alcohol, and she asked how the party was. She says one of the men laughed and said: “Girls.”
The mostly female “wellness advocates” who sell doTERRA’s products often say its ethical approach is what attracted them. But a two-year investigation has revealed a different reality in Somaliland, a self-declared republic north of Somalia and the source of much of doTERRA’s frankincense.
More than a dozen women working for doTERRA’s frankincense supplier, a Somaliland company called Asli Maydi, have told the Fuller Project that the company routinely underpays its workers, requires them to work in harsh conditions that are linked to health problems and is led by a politically powerful man whom multiple women have accused of sexual harassment and assault.
Presented with the Fuller Project’s findings, doTERRA said it would “temporarily suspend” its operations in Somaliland and was working to engage a third-party team to help it investigate the matter. It said it was “concerned” by the allegations of poor work conditions, which were “‘inconsistent with our current understanding of the operations”, and found the allegations of sexual misconduct “troubling”. DoTERRA “prides itself on supporting and empowering women” and plans to investigate the allegations of misconduct once it can access the country safely, the company said in an emailed statement.
Asli Maydi’s owner, Barkhad Hassan, did not respond to specific questions about the claims of mistreatment and assault, but he denied all allegations against him and said he had done much to improve the industry.
Broken promises
Thirteen frankincense sorters – female workers who divide frankincense resin by color, grade and quality – spoke to the Fuller Project anonymously about working nine to 12 hours a day, up to six days a week in a warehouse for Asli Maydi. Many say the company lured them with promises of a fair wage, food supplies and money for their children’s school fees.
None of the three women say they reported the incidents to police or clan elders – they said they were too afraid of what Hassan and his men would do to them.
Sexual violence is prohibited under the Somaliland penal code, but rape is rarely reported, according to Erica Marsh, an independent researcher of humanitarian issues in Africa. Police presence is scarce in rural Somaliland and clan elders usually handle cases of sexual violence, she says. Women often are ashamed to speak about sexual assaults, let alone report them. And under Somali customary law, alleged rapists may be required to compensate the victim’s family – often her male relatives, since traditional law treats women as legal minors. On occasion, clan elders even order victims to marry the perpetrators.