Former Tesla Worker Takes Elon Musk's Company to Court Over Racial Abuse, He Wins Ghc830 Million
- A man, Owen Diaz, has been paid for the racial abuse he suffered while working for Tesla, where he witnessed the derogatory treatment of blacks
- The court ruled in his favour, and Owen was given the sum of $137 million (Ghc830,151,157) as money for the stress he has been through and damages
- Many people who reacted to his story jokingly said that they would not mind being treated shabbily for such a payout
Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in
A 52-year-old man, Owen Diaz, who worked as an elevator operator in Tesla, said that he faced racial abuse in the company while he was a staff.
While working with Tesla, the man found cartoons that had a bad portrayal of black children. When he told his supervisors, they downplayed it and told him he “couldn’t take a joke.”, Labible reports.
Source: Instagram
Owen won the case
A part of the man’s lawsuit against the company said that Tesla’s progressive posturing starkly contrasts with how shabbily it treats its African-American workers.
Enjoy reading our stories? Join YEN.com.gh's Telegram channel for more!
After a long four-hour deliberation, a jury finally ruled in his favour. Lawrence Organ, Owen’s lawyer, said that it is a great thing one of the biggest corporations in America is made to face justice for the way it treats black people.
Take millions for your stress
Awarding him $137 million (Ghc830,151,157), Owen was given $7 million (Ghc42,339,451) for the emotional stress he has suffered and $130m (Ghc786,304,090) was for punitive damages.
When the story was shared on Instagram, people had a lot to say about it. At the time of writing this report, it had gathered over 150,000 likes with several comments.
Below are some of the reactions:
johnny.v23 said:
"For 137 million you can call me whatever you like."
calebjosephwebb joked:
"I don't work at Tesla but I think they abused me too."
youssefokab reacted funnily:
"Bro that’s 4 times more than what squid games is offering."
the_real_joshy said:
"Racism is expensive. Both literally and figuratively - if it’s not costing lives, it’s costing millions."
_idiosyncratical_ said:
"His future generations gonna be so glad bro they sorted out for life."
A man amazed by Tesla
Meanwhile,YEN.com.gh earlier reported that a Facebook user identified as Ayo Ojeniyi shared a video of a Yoruba man admiring his new Telsa electric car as he made a user review.
In the clip, the Nigerian man spoke in his native language as he gave a tour of the vehicle, telling people he wanted them to know the car is real.
Opening the back of the car, the man showed that there is enough space for luggage. He went ahead to the front of the vehicle where engines are normally placed but it was empty, nothing like other cars.
Source: YEN.com.gh
Linda Anderson Linda is a graduate of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in 2017 where she studied Chemical Engineering. She made an interesting career pivot from a Quality Control Officer to a Human Interest Editor in pursuit of doing what she loves and currently has close to 2 years experience in Journalism. Linda believes in kindness, respect, and empathy towards all and is firmly on board to help Yen.com.gh achieve all its set targets and goals.
Aba Afful (Copyeditor) Maame Aba serves as a copy editor at YEN.com.gh. She naturally enjoys working with words and has an eye for quality content. She has a keen interest in cyberspace and wants to see YEN.com.gh produce more impactful, thought-provoking, and error-free content. Aba has five years of experience as a content writer, blogger, author, and proofreader. She graduated from the Ghana Institute of Journalism in 2017. She joined the team in 2021.
