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Tesla has settled a racial discrimination lawsuit with an employee who alleged she was subject to racial discrimination and harassment.
The worker, Raina Pierce, claimed she was punished for actions that her non-Black colleagues received no disciplinary action for, and said her manager used phrases including “welcome to the slave house” as greetings.
Tesla has denied the allegations but has agreed to a yet-to-be-determined settlement fee.
‘You need to go to HR’ – Tesla employee alleges racial discrimination
The agreement between Tesla, owned by controversial billionaire Elon Musk, and Pierce, who installed latches on Tesla vehicle doors, was confirmed in a joint filing on Thursday last week.
San Francisco’s federal court presided over the case, which related to Pierce’s employment at Tesla’s facility in Fremont, California.
Per the lawsuit, Pierce claimed that she was subject to both gender-based insults and racial harassment.
The worker alleged her manager greeted her by using phrases such as “welcome to the plantation” and “welcome to the slave house.”
Pierce also recalled an occasion during which she was told by a Tesla co-worker who had temporarily joined her production line: “Ma'am, you need to go to HR because these leads are saying things about you that are not right.”
She further recalled seeing racial slurs written on walls across the California-based facility, including in bathrooms, and claimed she was shouted at and disciplined over situations for which her non-Black colleagues received no sanctions.
Another racial discrimination suit for Tesla
The lawsuit comes amid a backdrop of other racial discrimination allegations at Tesla’s site in Fremont.
In 2024, Tesla settled a harassment case for an undisclosed amount with a former elevator operator, Owen Diaz. The contractor, who is Black, alleged he was subjected to racial discrimination, including being told to "go back to Africa,” while working for the automaker.
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Like Pierce, Diaz claimed he saw racial graffiti on the walls of the plant and heard or witnessed numerous instances of slurs and racial misconduct.
Tesla denied the accusations, but agreed to a settlement after a jury awarded Diaz $3.2million in 2023. He had earlier been awarded $137million by a jury in 2021, with that proposed payout overturned by a judge who ruled it excessive.
The Fremont arm of Musk’s automotive firm is also facing the prospect of a class action suit involving nearly 6,000 current and former Black workers, who collectively claim they witnessed racist graffiti, discrimination, and harassment.
