Tesla hit by string of US sex harassment lawsuits

Six women sued Tesla connected Tuesday, alleging a civilization of intersexual harassment astatine the electrical carmaker's California works and different facilities that included unwanted touching, catcalls and retaliation for those who complained.

The lawsuits—filed wrong a period of 2 others—add to the controversies centered connected the Fremont mill successful the San Francisco Bay country and which see a Black ex-employee being awarded $137 cardinal successful a racism case.

"Tesla's mill level much resembles a crude, archaic operation tract oregon frat location than a cutting-edge institution successful the bosom of the progressive San Francisco Bay area," respective of the suits claim.

Tesla did not instantly respond to a petition for remark connected the complaints, which successful astatine slightest 1 lawsuit argued CEO Elon Musk's explicit oregon provocative tweets influenced the code astatine the workplace.

The six abstracted caller suits filed Tuesday successful a California tribunal see 5 women who enactment oregon worked successful the Fremont mill facilities, portion 1 was employed successful work centers successful confederate California.

Michala Curran was 18 erstwhile she started her occupation astatine the Fremont works and wrong weeks, her supervisor and co-workers were making explicit comments to her look astir her body.

One antheral co-worker sexually propositioned her, saying works employees often had enactment successful the parking lot.

"After astir 2 months of being sexualized astatine her archetypal occupation retired of precocious school, she could not instrumentality it anymore and decided to quit," her suit says, alleging "rampant intersexual harassment astatine Tesla."

SpaceX allegations

The different cases were filed by Jessica Brooks, Samira Sheppard, Eden Mederos, Alize Brown and Alisa Blickman, who alleged successful her suit that she faced retaliation for reporting the misconduct.

"She was denied definite privileges and benefits that were afforded to women who did not entity to supervisors' intersexual advances and flirtations," Blickman's ailment says.

Mederos, who worked successful confederate California Tesla work centers, said Musk tweets that notation enactment oregon drugs inspired laughter and jokes among her co-workers.

"When Tesla launched the Model Y, Elon repeatedly pointed retired that erstwhile 1 reads the Tesla Models S, 3, X and Y together, it spells 'SEXY,'" her suit said. "Some of Ms. Mederos' co-workers latched onto this, calling everything 'sexy.'"

Echoing concerns successful the lawsuits, a erstwhile technologist from Musk's SpaceX rocket steadfast has published an effort alleging she was sexually harassed astatine work.

"Men from the institution recovered my Instagram account, messaging maine to inquire maine out. One called my telephone astatine 4:00 am. Another coworker came to my location and insisted connected touching maine adjacent erstwhile I repeatedly requested we enactment professional," wrote Ashley Kosak.

"I reported each incidental of intersexual harassment I experienced to HR, and thing was done," she added.

SpaceX did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

The bid of lawsuits travel aft a California assemblage ruled successful October that Tesla should wage a Black ex-employee $137 cardinal successful damages for turning a unsighted oculus to racism the antheral encountered astatine the Fremont plant.

Time mag connected Monday named Musk arsenic its idiosyncratic of the twelvemonth 2021, citing his embodiment of caller technological shifts but besides troubling trends reshaping people's lives.

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© 2021 AFP