It is a judgment which could be dated. A Californian jury on Monday, October 4, condemned the automobile company Tesla to pay a black ex-employee nearly 137 million dollars (about 118 million euros) in damages, for turning a blind eye to racism suffered by the man in a factory of the group.
Hired through a recruitment agency, Owen Diaz worked as a freight elevator operator between June 2015 and July 2016 at the electric vehicle manufacturer’s Fremont, California plant, where he suffered racist slurs and a hostile work environment. , according to court documents.
During the trial, Mr. Diaz explained that African Americans at the factory, where his son also worked, were regularly victims of racist nicknames and disparagement. According to his testimony, employees drew swastikas, as well as graffiti and racist drawings around the factory. Mr Diaz claimed that despite complaints to the hierarchy, Tesla did not react to end the usual racism.
” A facade “
“Tesla’s progressive image was a facade hiding the retrograde and demeaning treatment of its African-American employees”, according to the complaint.
The San Francisco Federal Court jury awarded Mr. Diaz $ 6.9 million in damages for “Emotional distress”, and $ 130 million in punishment, his lawyer, Larry Organ, told the Washington post. “They decided on an amount that could serve as a wake-up call for American firms”, he told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Tuesday. “Don’t behave in a racist way and don’t let racism continue,” the lawyer added.
“I knew Owen was telling the truth, I just had to prove it to eight unknown people”, he said, with reference to the jury. “Normal people see clearly through the bullshit displayed in American boxes.”
On the side of Tesla, the vice president in charge of human resources, Valerie Capers Workman, admitted part of the facts in a press release published in the wake of the verdict: “While we firmly believe that the facts do not justify this decision of the San Francisco jury, we recognize that in 2015 and 2016 we were not perfect. “ She mentions that at the Fremont plant, other employees testified to having “Regularly heard racist insults”, whose word nigger (“Nigger”). According to her, these employees said that “Most of the time they thought that this language was used in a ‘friendly’ way and in general by African-American colleagues.” She said Tesla responded to Owen Diaz’s complaints by firing two contract workers.
“Now: they make up excuses”
“Our line of attack was that Tesla does not assume its responsibilities”, detailed Larry Organ. “They are doing the same thing now: they are making excuses”, he accused.
Valerie Capers Workman also pointed out that Tesla has made changes since Owen Diaz’s time at the plant, building a human resources team that investigates employee complaints. “We are still not perfect. But we have come a long way in five years ”, she added.
In May, after arbitration, Tesla was forced to pay more than $ 1 million for similar allegations by another former worker at the Fremont plant. This employee had alleged that his colleagues had subjected him to racist slurs, and that his supervisors had ignored his complaints.