Leading electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Inc. (TSLA) has been ordered by a federal judge to pay more than $130 million for compensation of damages to its black former employee after the jury determined that the employee was subjected to racially hostile work environment.
The victim is one Owen Diaz, a contract worker who worked as an elevator operator at Tesla’s Fremont factory between 2015 and 2016. According to Wall Street Journal, it is when Diaz was racially harassed.
On its official website, the company acknowledged the trial was linked to racial slurs heard on the factory floor and racist graffiti in the bathrooms. Tesla further adds that Diaz complained about racial harassment three times and as a company they took action to make sure measures were taken against staffing agencies.
“While we strongly believe that these facts don’t justify the verdict reached by the jury in San Francisco, we do recognize that in 2015 and 2016 we were not perfect,” said Tesla.
The jury awarded Diaz $6.9 million as damage compensations and another $130 million for punitive damages.
