SpaceX ex-employees file lawsuit against Elon Musk for termination
Eight ex-employees of the American space company SpaceX, consisting of four females and four males, are filing a case against the company for their firing. These workers raised issues about sexual misconduct and discrimination against women in a public missive and were let go in June 2022. As per their legal complaint, the company's CEO Elon Musk commanded their dismissal personally.
In their legal filing at a LA court, the eight complainants portray a "persistent sexist company culture" at SpaceX. According to them, the targets of this environment are women and LGBTQ+ individuals, with the latter being an acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other gender identities.
The lawsuit portrays Musk as managing the company like "in the Middle Ages." He treats women as sexual playthings, evaluating them only based on the size of their bras, deluges employees with sexually suggestive asides, and greets those denouncing these surroundings with alternatives for employment.
In their joint letter, the staff also chastised Musk's conduct in public. "His actions are a continual diversion and source of embarrassment for us," it maintained. "With Elon acting as the company's CEO and primary representative, every Tweet Elon sends is de facto a public statement by the organization." Moreover, his conduct is mimicked within the company.
The accusations from the eight ex-employees have already motivated an examination by the US agency responsible for handling work relationships. SpaceX, in turn, has filed a suit to impede the former workers from sharing their accounts. In response to an AFP enquiry, SpaceX initially abstained from commenting on the lawsuit.
Read also:
- The legal complaint further alleges that Elon Musk, the former SpaceX CEO, was personally involved in the termination of the employees who had spoken out against sexual harassment within the company.
- Prior to their termination, these SpaceX employees had accused Musk of maintaining a company culture that was hostile towards women and LGBTQ+ individuals, using derogatory language and making inappropriate comments.
- Despite the termination of these former SpaceX employees, Musk's behavior and comments continue to impact the company, as he is still the CEO and his public statements are seen as representing the company as a whole.
