Growing the Voices of Our Future
The Westside Gazette Newspaper is honored to feature these editorial contributions made by local students.
The testimony of a Black former elevator operator at Tesla Inc.’s (TSLA.O) main California assembly plant on the psychological toll inflicted on him by a barrage of racial epithets, threats, and other workplace incidents on him on Wednesday brought tears to his eyes. When explaining how he had recorded Spanish-speaking coworkers and later learned they were calling him racial slurs using a translation website, the plaintiff, Owen Diaz, occasionally found it difficult to speak during his testimony. In addition to straining his relationship with his son, who also worked at the Fremont, California, electric vehicle factory, Diaz claimed that racial incidents there have also made it difficult for him to trust others. The incident, according to Diaz, “made me feel less than a man (and) it made me question my worth.” “I was living paycheck to paycheck, and I needed the job,” he continued. U.S. District Judge William Orrick once ordered a 15-minute break so that Diaz could gather himself. On Thursday, Tesla’s attorneys will wrap up their cross-examination of Diaz.
On Wednesday, Diaz was questioned by Alex Spiro, a lawyer for the company, about why there was no record of him sending supervisors written complaints about racist behavior, such as emails and texts. In a series of heated exchanges, Diaz claimed that he could not remember if he had complained verbally or in writing. He also accused Spiro of misrepresenting his answers to other questions. A jury found Tesla liable for discrimination in 2021 and ordered the company to pay Diaz $137 million, which led to the five-day trial on damages. On Monday, the trial got underway. Last year, Orrick concurred with the jury that the maker of electric vehicles had created a hostile work environment but reduced the award to $15 million. Diaz opted for a new trial on damages before a different jury after rejecting the lower settlement offer.
In his opening remarks on Monday, Bernard Alexander, a lawyer for Diaz, compared the Fremont plant to a “plantation” where Black employees were singled out for harassment and their complaints were dismissed by managers. Tesla has reaffirmed its policy of not tolerating workplace harassment and of treating claims of discrimination seriously. Spiro informed the jury on Monday that there was insufficient evidence to support a multimillion-dollar award and that Diaz was exaggerating his claims of emotional distress.
Submitted by Layla Davidson
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