The Facts
On Monday, a new trial to determine how much Tesla must pay Owen Diaz — a Black former Tesla employee who a jury determined was subjected to racial harassment — began in San Francisco federal court.
Previously, a jury in October 2021 awarded Diaz an unprecedented $137M in damages. The jury found Diaz was subjected to racist taunts and graffiti while working at the company's auto plant in Fremont, Calif, and the company did not intervene.
The Spin
Narrative A
There’s actually little evidence that what Diaz claims happened to him occurred. He certainly shouldn't be able to claim millions of dollars in damages under the circumstances. The full context is needed in order to fully evaluate this case.
Narrative B
Whether Diaz was abused has already been determined by both a jury and a judge. Now the only thing left to determine is how much he should be paid in damages. Tesla’s attempt to diminish the award as low as it can go shows the company doesn’t value its employees, even when they face severe racial harassment in the workplace.
