Elon Musk pursued women working at SpaceX for sex, WSJ says
- by The Straits Times
- Jun 13, 2024
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NEW YORK - SpaceX founder and chief executive Elon Musk pursued women working at the company for sex, including a former intern, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing affidavits signed by one of the women and other interviews.
Former SpaceX executives told the Journal that company policies are not enforced with Mr Musk, and that contributes to a culture of sexism and harassment.
Company president Gwynne Shotwell disagreed with that assessment, telling the newspaper that SpaceX fully investigates all complaints of harassment and takes appropriate actions in response.
Mr Musk and SpaceX did not reply to requests for comment from Bloomberg.
Meanwhile, workers fired by SpaceX filed a lawsuit on June 12 accusing Mr Musk of fostering a sexist “Dark Ages” culture at the company.
The Journal in its report said that in 2013, one of the women who reported directly to Mr Musk left the company and alleged that the CEO had asked her to have his babies, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the allegations. Their relationship deteriorated after she declined his offer, the Journal said.
In another case in 2014, a woman who had a sexual relationship with Mr Musk while she directly reported to him faced recriminations when the relationship ended badly, the Journal reported. She left the company and signed an agreement prohibiting her from discussing her work for Mr Musk, the newspaper said.
The June 12 lawsuit filed in a California court contends Mr Musk had the workers terminated after they published an open letter detailing their concerns and calling on the company’s board to distance itself from him.
“Elon Musk trumpets SpaceX as the leader to a brave new world of space travel,” the court filing says.
“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.”
The suit charges Mr Musk and SpaceX with sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation and wrongful termination.
The fired workers have already filed a complaint with the US National Labour Relations Board, but that has been stalled by a lawsuit by Mr Musk trying to derail it.
Tesla, Mr Musk’s other flagship company, has been the subject of similar accusations of racism and sexual harassment at its California site. BLOOMBERG, AFP
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