Last December, Activision-Blizzard decided the best thing it could do in the middle of a massive sexual harassment and discrimination scandal that had provoked multiple lawsuits, federal investigations, stock dips, a hastily arranged merger behind the scenes, and intense media scrutiny was to lay off a bunch of workers at one of its subsidiaries, Raven Software, including some workers who had just been relocated to Wisconsin for the job. The remaining QA workers went on strike and have spent the last half year organizing to form a union – one that Activision-Blizzard has fought tooth and nail to prevent with overt union–busting that allegedly continued with more threats into this very week.
Well, too bad for Activision-Blizzard because the QA group voted today in favor of forming the union – a first in the US gaming industry. According to The Washington Post, the vote was 19 to 3 with 3 additional “challenged ballots”; the National Labor Relations Board tallied the votes earlier today. Activision-Blizzard is now forced to negotiate a contract with those workers. Interestingly, WAPO notes that “[s]ince the 12 QA testers were let go in December, Activision hired nine testers who are now eligible to vote” – which required “some scrambling on the potential union’s part to recruit the new hires.”
“We respect and believe in the right of all employees to decide whether or not to support or vote for a union,” Activision-Blizzard told WAPO, and then it immediately contradicted that statement: “We believe that an important decision that will impact the entire Raven Software studio of roughly 350 people should not be made by 19 of Raven employees. We’re committed to doing what’s best for the studio and our employees.”
Regardless of Activision-Blizzard’s union-busting attempts, this is a big deal for the games industry in general and QA testers in specific. “What’s even more exciting than what this means for us at Raven is the precedent this sets for the game industry,” WAPO quotes one tester saying. “Quality assurance testers being underpaid and exploited is the standard and with unions we can change that. I hope that ours is the first union of many for QA workers and I’m really looking forward to seeing which studio is next.”
• Workers at Blizzard-owned Proletariat say management refused its union and is ‘forcing’ them to go through NLRB voting
• QA workers at Diablo IV studio unanimously vote to form a union
• National Labor Relations Board denies Activision-Blizzard’s attempt to freeze Albany QA workers’ union vote
• Blizzard once again tries to delay Albany QA workers’ union vote through a request for review
• Raven workers accuse Activision-Blizzard of ‘continued intransigence’ during union negotiations
• Activision-Blizzard continues obstructing QA worker unionization with latest appeal
• Activision-Blizzard’s petition to dismiss discrimination suit was thrown out, company faces fresh unfair labor practice charges
• Blizzard Albany’s Diablo QA wins right to unionize as NLRB rejects Activision-Blizzard challenge
• Labor board determines Activision-Blizzard retaliated against unionizers, Microsoft launches acquisition website
• Blizzard is union-busting again, this time targeting the Diablo IV team
• Microsoft and CWA union enter into ‘labor neutrality’ agreement that will ultimately apply to Activision-Blizzard
• Its legal options exhausted, Activision-Blizzard finally agrees to negotiate with union after half a year of clowning
• Microsoft promises ‘creative and collaborative approaches with unions’ in official blog post
• Raven Software QA votes to form union in spite of months of Activision-Blizzard unionbusting
• Activision-Blizzard creeps out the internet with its ‘Diversity Space Tool’ as union-busting continues
• CWA says Activision-Blizzard management threatened workers for discussing labor rights
• Activision-Blizzard Q1 2022: Revenues plummet, Blizzard loses another 2M players
• Activision-Blizzard’s Raven Software gets green light to vote for a union by National Labor Relations Board
• Activision-Blizzard promotes over a thousand QA testers and bumps their pay – but not the ones unionizing
• Activision Blizzard’s Bobby Kotick urged by U.S. Senator to get out of the way of unionization efforts
• ABK reportedly tries to stall Raven Software’s union vote as DFEH and SEC issue new subpoenas
• Raven Software files for union election after ActiBlizz ignores recognition request
• Activision’s Raven Software workers end strike pending official recognition of its union
• Activision-Blizzard’s Raven Software is formally unionizing
• Activision-Blizzard addresses Call of Duty mess, striking devs report ‘radio silence’
• Raven Software strike extends to its third week as Activision-Blizzard claims management is listening
• Activision-Blizzard fields new accusations as workers strike, fundraise, and issue union cards
• Activision-Blizzard is walking out again, Australia’s game industry unionizes
• Activision-Blizzard is suddenly laying off more QA, won’t be at The Game Awards
