AUSTIN, Texas — A former Tesla employee is suing the company, claiming she was illegally terminated from her position earlier this year.
According to the lawsuit, the woman claims she was fired in January as retaliation for reporting discrimination and harassment by her superiors.
The woman, who worked at Tesla for eight years, stated she was ridiculed for her accent and national origin by supervisors and unfairly criticized for her performance despite her "impeccable" performance records.
After reporting how she was being treated "through the appropriate channels," the woman claims she was retaliated against and fired.
As part of the retaliation, the woman claims a member of Tesla's legal team asked her to access a purchase order that "contained improper allocation of Tesla resources" one day before her termination. In the lawsuit, the woman said she was privy to certain improprieties related to ordering and buying materials, which also led to her being fired.
The woman is now suing Tesla for $1 million in damages, loss of income, back wages, interest on the back and front pay, along with lost benefits.
KVUE reached out to Tesla for a response to the lawsuit, but we have not received a response.
The lawsuit filed Tuesday night is just the latest against the Tesla Giga Texas facility in Austin.
In August, a wrongful death lawsuit was filed after the family of Victor Gomez Sr. claimed he died after being electrocuted on the job. Tesla was ordered to preserve the evidence related to Gomez's death, but a hearing on the lawsuit has been delayed.
