The US Justice Department (DOJ) plans to dismiss its long-pending administrative complaint accusing Elon Musk’s SpaceX of discriminating against refugees and asylum seekers in its hiring practices, Bloomberg reports.
The complaint, initiated in 2023 under the Biden administration, alleged that SpaceX illegally discouraged individuals granted asylum or refugee status from applying for positions within the company. The DOJ’s investigation, which began in 2020, formed the basis of the discrimination allegations.
However, a federal judge in Texas blocked the administrative proceedings while SpaceX challenged the DOJ’s authority to pursue the case. SpaceX argued that the complaint was “factually and legally insupportable.”
On Thursday, DOJ lawyers informed the Texas court that they intend to drop the administrative case, citing “mootness grounds.” The DOJ, under what would be a rare move, provided no further details regarding the reasoning behind the decision.
The case, Space Exploration Technologies Corporation v. Bell, 23-cv-00137, was filed in the US District Court of Southern District of Texas (Brownsville).
