Vaughn v. Tesla, Inc. (Case Number RG17882082) is a certified, class action lawsuit brought by Marcus Vaughn, Titus McCaleb, and Monica Chatman, Black former employees at the Tesla factory in Fremont, California. The case alleges widespread race discrimination and harassment, including the pervasive use of racially offensive language (like the “N-word”) by associates, leads, and supervisors. The lawsuit says that despite its knowledge of such conduct, Tesla has not taken sufficient action to stop the ongoing racism in its factory. The lawsuit seeks to stop the ongoing race discrimination and harassment at Tesla’s Fremont factory, to obtain meaningful compensation for current and former Black employees who were exposed to unlawful race harassment at Tesla, and to punish Tesla for its conduct.
On May 17, 2024, the Alameda Superior Court issue certified the case as a class action. The court noted that “[t]he approximately 500 declarations in support of and in opposition to this motion suggest that over a period of approximately eight years Tesla workers in the Fremont factory heard the n-word and otherwise experienced conditions that might reasonably be characterized as race harassment.” The class action trial will address the following questions:
- Was there a pattern or practice of pervasive race harassment at Tesla's Fremont Factory? If so, for what time period or periods?
- For each of the time periods identified in response to question number 1, did Tesla know or should have known of the pattern or practice of pervasive race harassment at the Fremont factory?
- If Tesla knew or should have known that there was a pattern or practice of pervasive race harassment at the Fremont Factory for a time period identified in response to question number 2, did Tesla fail to take immediate and appropriate corrective action?
The class period for the trial on these issues runs through May 17, 2024.
Additionally, the class trial will address whether the court should issue an injunction requiring Tesla to take action to stop harassment at Tesla's Fremont Factory. The class period for the injunctive relief class runs through the date of judgment in the trial.
Our firm is working with Bryan Schwartz Law, P.C. and the California Civil Rights Law Group in representing Plaintiffs and the class. The deRubertis Law Firm will also be working with the team on the class action trial. For more information about their firms, please visit:
This case is entitled Vaughn et al. v Tesla, Inc. Court File No. RG17882082 (Alameda County Superior Court).
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