© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The logo of car manufacturer Tesla is seen at a branch office in Bern, Switzerland October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann
By Daniel Wiessner
(Reuters) -Tesla Inc filed a complaint on Tuesday accusing a California civil rights agency that is suing the electric car maker for race discrimination of rushing to file lawsuits against businesses without conducting proper investigations.
Tesla (NASDAQ:) in a 10-page complaint told California’s Office of Administrative Law (OAL) that the state Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) has adopted “underground regulations” that flout requirements it must meet before suing employers.
DFEH in a February lawsuit claimed Tesla’s flagship Fremont, California, plant was a racially segregated workplace where Black workers were harassed and discriminated against in terms of job assignments, discipline and pay.
Tesla has denied wrongdoing and said the lawsuit was politically motivated. In its filing on Tuesday, Tesla claimed DFEH violated state law by suing Tesla without first notifying the company of all of the claims or giving it a chance to settle.
The company said DFEH treats those requirements as “a mere bureaucratic nuisance requiring only sham compliance.”
DFEH and OAL did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
OAL reviews state agency regulations and can issue determinations that agency rules are invalid but has no enforcement powers.
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