Tesla loses bid to maneuver sexual harassment lawsuit to arbitration

Might 24 (Reuters) - A California state choose has rejected Tesla Inc's (TSLA.O) bid to send a lawsuit alleging widespread sexual harassment on the firm's flagship meeting plant to private arbitration, permitting it to move ahead in court.

California Superior Courtroom Choose Stephen Kaus in Oakland denied Tesla's motion to compel arbitration in a quick order on Monday.

In a written opinion launched on Tuesday, Kaus said Tesla had improperly pressured the plaintiff, Jessica Barraza, to signal an arbitration agreement after she had already quit her earlier job.

Register

"Principally, Barraza was ambushed," the judge wrote.

Barraza in the lawsuit filed in November claims staff and supervisors at the Fremont, California plant routinely made lewd feedback and gestures to female workers, and that the corporate failed to address complaints.

The lawsuit is considered one of not less than seven pending in California state courtroom to make related claims towards Tesla. Kaus is presiding over five more of these cases.

Tesla did not instantly respond to a request for touch upon Tuesday.

David Lowe, a lawyer for Barraza, called the decision "a victory for public accountability."

"Because of this ruling... Tesla might be judged by a jury of Ms. Barraza's friends in a public courtroom," Lowe stated in a press release.

Along with the pending sexual harassment claims, Tesla is dealing with separate lawsuits accusing it of tolerating widespread race discrimination at its vegetation. A California decide last month awarded $15 million to a Black former factory worker who stated he was subjected to racist slurs and graffiti from coworkers. read extra

Tesla has stated it doesn't tolerate harassment and has disciplined and fired employees who engaged in misconduct.

Register

Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Belief Principles.