Discrimination in the workplace?
US authorities want to sue Tesla
2/9/2022, 7:26 p.m
The pressure on Tesla is growing: First, ex-employees at the plant in Fremont, California, file a lawsuit against the automaker because they feel discriminated against in the workplace. Now they are being followed by an authority that has been investigating the incidents for three years.
The US electric car maker Tesla is facing a lawsuit from a California supervisory authority over allegations of racial discrimination and harassment in the workplace. The company, founded by technology pioneer Elon Musk, said the Authority for Fairness in Workplace and Housing (DFEH) intends to file a civil lawsuit. The move follows a three-year investigation into incidents at the Tesla plant in Fremont, California, between 2015 and 2019.
Several Tesla employees and ex-employees have made allegations of racial discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace. Several women say they have been inappropriately touched by male colleagues. Last October, a grand jury ordered Tesla to pay $137 million in damages for racist incidents at its Fremont plant.
Tesla was accused, among other things, of not having done anything about the insults despite being told. With a view to the upcoming lawsuit by the Californian supervisory authority, Tesla firmly rejected such allegations. “Tesla is firmly opposed to all forms of discrimination and harassment,” the company said. Employees who racially insulted colleagues or harassed them in any way were always punished and fired. “Attacking a company like Tesla, which has done so much good for California, should not be the primary objective of any federal agency with prosecutorial powers,” the automaker said.