Tesla loses bid to maneuver sexual harassment lawsuit to arbitration

Might 24 (Reuters) - A California state judge has rejected Tesla Inc's (TSLA.O) bid to send a lawsuit alleging widespread sexual harassment at the company's flagship meeting plant to non-public arbitration, allowing it to move ahead in court docket.

California Superior Court docket Choose Stephen Kaus in Oakland denied Tesla's movement to compel arbitration in a short order on Monday.

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

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

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

The lawsuit is considered one of at least seven pending in California state court docket to make related claims in opposition to Tesla. Kaus is presiding over 5 more of those instances.

Tesla did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Tuesday.

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

"Because of this ruling... Tesla will probably be judged by a jury of Ms. Barraza's peers in a public courtroom," Lowe stated in a statement.

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

Tesla has said it does not tolerate harassment and has disciplined and fired workers who engaged in misconduct.

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

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