Billionaire Elon Musk's pro-Trump political action committee is being sued by two women who claim they were cheated out of their wages after canvassing for votes on behalf of a Republican U.S. House member facing a tough reelection battle in California.
The proposed class action lawsuit marks the latest problem plaguing the get-out-the-vote operation mounted by America PAC, to which Musk has given more than $118 million of his world-leading fortune, estimated at $263 billion by Forbes.
Court papers allege that America PAC and Michelle Steel for Congress intentionally failed to pay Tamiko Anderson and Patricia Kelly, who were hired to knock on doors in Orange County, California, last month.
Anderson and Kelly claim they and other canvassers "were told that they would be paid an hourly rate but later were not paid based on the hourly rate agreed upon."
Instead, they were paid "based on the number of residents that they canvassed," in alleged violation of minimum wage and overtime laws, according to lawsuit, first reported Friday night by Wired.
The women's lead lawyer, Larry Lee, told the Guardian that Anderson and Kelly were promised about $25 an hour.
Musk's social media company X and a lawyer who represents him didn't immediately respond to requests for comment or provide contact information for an America PAC spokesperson, according to Wired.
In a statement, Steel's campaign said it "has no knowledge of these individuals, they did not and do not work for the Steel campaign, and the campaign will not comment on individuals that involve a Super PAC with which we have no involvement."
Steel, who won her second term in 2022 by nearly 5%, has called her race this year against Democratic challenger Derek Tran her "hardest campaign," according to Los Angeles TV station KABC.
Two other defendants, the Blair Group, described in court papers as a voter-contact company based in North Carolina, and Florida-based Liberty Staffing Services, didn't return requests for comment, Wired said.
The lawsuit, filed in state Superior Court in Orange County, followed an Oct. 19 report in which the Guardian said workers hired by America PAC to canvass voters in Arizona and Nevada apparently faked about one-quarter of their door knocks on behalf of former President Donald Trump.
On Wednesday, Wired also reported that America PAC canvassers were flown to Michigan and driven around in the back of a moving van without being told beforehand that they'd be working for Musk on behalf of Trump.
Those workers were allegedly threatened that their motel rooms wouldn't be paid for if if they didn't meet their "engagement rate" targets, according to Wired.
