A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in 2020. | Image: Joe Burbank / Orlando Sentinel / Tribune News Service via Getty Images
The US Department of Justice is suing Elon Musk’s SpaceX over allegations that it discriminated against asylees and refugees in hiring. In a lawsuit filed on Wednesday, the DOJ claims from at least September 2018 to May 2022, SpaceX discouraged refugees and asylees from applying to the company “by wrongly stating that SpaceX can only hire U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents.”
The lawsuit states SpaceX “failed to fairly consider” and “refused to hire” the asylees and refugees who ended up applying anyway. It also alleges that SpaceX “wrongly claimed” that the US’s export control laws allowed it to only hire US citizens and lawful residents. Additionally, the DOJ claims SpaceX hired “only” US citizens and green card holders from…