Former Tesla employee who said he was racially abused awarded $1 million

Tesla has been ordered to pay roughly $1 million to a former employee who filed a legal complaint alleging he was called the N-word while working in the electric automaker's factory in California.

Melvin Berry was hired by Tesla as a materials handler in 2015, but quit only 17 months later after being harassed on the job, according to court documents. Earlier this year, Berry hired San Francisco employment lawyer Jeannette Vaccaro to represent him in a private arbitration hearing with Tesla. Vaccaro argued that Tesla supervisors ignored Berry's complaints when he told them about being called the N-word by co-workers.  Arbitrator Elaine Rushing said in her ruling that there was evidence that two Tesla supervisors used racial slurs against Berry and that those instance caused him emotional and psychological harm. Rushing noted that "case law is clear that one instance of a supervisor directing the N-word at a subordinate is sufficient to constitute severe harassment."