On Wednesday, June 12, 2024, fired SpaceX workers filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk, accusing him of creating a sexist “Dark Ages” culture at the company he founded. The lawsuit charges Musk and SpaceX with sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful termination.
“Elon Musk trumpets SpaceX as the leader to a brave new world of space travel,” the court filing states. “But (he) runs his company in the Dark Ages — treating women as sexual objects to be evaluated on their bra size, bombarding the workplace with lewd sexual banter, and offering the reprise to those who challenge the ‘Animal House’ environment that if they don’t like it they can seek employment elsewhere.”
Plaintiffs’ attorney Laurie Burgess said, “Musk thinks he’s above the law. We look forward to holding Musk accountable for his actions at trial.”
The fired workers have also filed a complaint with the U.S. National Labor Relations Board, which has been stalled by a lawsuit from Musk attempting to derail it.
“Filing this suit marks an important milestone in our quest for justice, for holding leadership accountable, and for implementing responsible changes in workplace policies for our colleagues at SpaceX who continue to toil in a hostile work environment,” said plaintiff Paige Holland-Thielen. “We hope that this lawsuit encourages our colleagues to stay strong and to keep fighting for a better workplace.”
The lawsuit claims SpaceX fostered a hostile work environment where sexual harassment jokes were common, women were paid less than men, and complainers were dismissed. Plaintiffs’ attorneys stated, “Musk knowingly and purposefully created an unwelcome hostile work environment based upon his conduct of interjecting into the workplace vile sexual photographs, memes, and commentary that demeaned women and/or the LGBTQ+ community.”
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Tesla, another of Musk’s companies, has faced similar accusations of racism and sexual harassment at its California site.
