*An African-American man who worked for auto company Tesla claims he was harassed by his co-workers and called the n-word, but fellow employees have come forward with a different account that has led to the man being suspended with pay, pending further investigation.
According to TMZ, DeWitt Lambert filed a federal lawsuit, claiming he started being harassed shortly after he began working at the car company in 2015 as a production associate.
It started with petty behavior, like placing stickers on his back, putting nuts and screws in his pocket and hiding his tools, the lawsuit states.
Lambert says things escalated a few months later with a menacing recording left on his voicemail that said, “N****r, we take your ass home, n****r. Shred you up in pieces, n****r. Cut you up n****r, send your ass [to] everyone in yo family so everybody can have a piece of you, n****r. Straight up, n****r. We get down like that, n****r.”
The lawsuit also claims employees humiliated him, sticking a drill gun in his butt while he was bent over. They also routinely made comments about the size of his penis.
Lambert says after he complained, some of the alleged harassers were actually rewarded with a promotion.
He’s claiming discrimination, a hostile work environment and seeks an unspecified amount in damages.
Tesla says they’ve investigated Lambert’s complaint, and that the accused employees involved told a much different version of events leading up to the recording showing them using the n-word.
According to TMZ, Tesla says they now have personal instant messages where Lambert not only uses the n-word, but says he was seeking revenge on his co-workers. Read Tesla’s full account of the lawsuit here.
Tesla says they’ve suspended Lambert, with pay, while they reopen the investigation.
Below, the video at the center of the lawsuit:
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