Activision Blizzard Union History

A few months ago on our portal the news came out that Activision Blizzard testers have created a union. Whether you are interested in news from the gaming world or not, most likely you have already heard that life in game development is not easy. This is clearly illustrated by a recent article about union CD Project Red.

However, it was not immediately possible to organize these trade unions. ActiBlizz was not at all delighted with this prospect and for a long time prevented the creation of a trade union, and then completely refused to recognize it. This behavior is quite typical for the AAA industry. The history of trade unions at Activision Blizzard is the story of the struggle of employees against the interests of the company, which resorted to any tricks and manipulations, and sometimes outright lies.

Three trade unions

There were three attempts to form a union at ActiBlizz: testers from Raven QA, Middleton, Wisconsin (Call of Duty), testers from Blizzard Albany, New York (Diablo IV) and employees of several departments of Proletariat, Boston (World of Warcraft).

The organization of all three unions took place with the broad support of the Communications Workers of America (CWA).

Raven Software

The starting point can be considered May 2022, when the Game Worker Alliance (G.W.A.), a testing union for a subsidiary of Raven Software, becomes the first union within ActiBlizz and the second official union in the video game industry. The vote was the culmination of months of preparation and organized opposition from Activision Blizzard.

In December 2021, 12 Raven QA employees were told they would be laid off in January. Workers protested, which turned into a five-week strike at the Wisconsin Call of Duty support office. At the end of this strike, the remaining QA workers formed a union in partnership with the CWA.

Activision Blizzard tried in every possible way to stop the trade union movement. A few days after GWA was formed, Raven QA employees were pulled out of their department and assigned to different teams.

Initially, employees attempted to form a union through a simplified process based on signed application cards (authorization cards). However, Raven refused to recognize them and, in an attempt to make life difficult for activists, demanded that the issue be resolved through a formal election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Also during this time, the company filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board that the voting division be made up of employees from all of Raven Software's divisions, not just the QA workers trying to unionize. This could potentially dilute the majority needed to formally elect the union. Brian Bulatao, a former Trump administrator and current chief administrative officer of Activision Blizzard, sent a letter to his colleagues saying called for employees “to think about the consequences of the merger.”

All these attempts failed to stop GWA, and vote was won.

Blizzard Albany

Then in December of the same 2022 the second union wins the voteorganized by QA testers from Blizzard's Albany, New York offices who worked on Diablo IV.

As with Raven Software, the publisher fiercely resisted unionization at Blizzard Albany. Throughout 2022, CWA (Communications Workers of America) filed a number of unfair labor practice complaints, accusing Blizzard of violating employees' rights to organize And refusal to raise wages for Raven employees involved in union activities. Activision Blizzard's request to have all Albany office employees participate in the union vote was denied.

Proletariat

The third unionization attempt takes place in January 2023 at the Proletariat studio. The Proletariat union was of particular interest because it would be the first example of unionization of workers from different departments within the entire company.

However, the studio had to cancel union elections. A statement from the Communications Workers of America union confirms the news that it is Proletariat CEO Seth Sivak's fault.

“Like many company founders, he took employee concerns as an attack on himself and held a series of meetings that demoralized and disempowered employees, making free and fair elections impossible,” CWA said in a statement.

Notable here is the statement from Activision Blizzard spokesperson Joe Cristinat: “We appreciate that CWA unilaterally decided to withdraw the petition after listening to employee feedback. As stated, we celebrate the freedom of every employee to safely express their preferences through confidential voting.”

Next Christinat deniesthat the general director of Proletariat interfered in the process of creating a union in the studio:

“CEO Proletariat was responding to concerns from employees who felt pressured or intimidated by CWA and wanted more information about what joining a union might mean. He defended the right of employees to express their true preferences in a private vote so that they would not be persecuted for their intentions—as he is now being subjected to by CWA.”

conclusions

Blizzard's union experience is valuable in many ways. The first two successful attempts teach us that even in the face of resistance, with the right support, it is possible to organize a union within a major corporation.

Even the defeat of the Proletariat should not be taken unequivocally. First, the attempt at organization itself is valuable. Although ActiBlizz management, with the support of the subsidiary's loyal CEO, succeeded in getting the vote overturned, employees made contact with the CWA, a much older, larger, and more experienced union. And most likely, the end of this story is still far away.