ActivisionBlizzard Employees Protest Working Conditions

[phantasmas 9,924]

Statement of Intent:

Given last week’s statements from Activision Blizzard, Inc. and their legal counsel regarding the DFEH lawsuit, as well as the subsequent internal statement from Frances Townsend, and the many stories shared by current and former employees of Activision Blizzard since, we believe that our values as employees are not being accurately reflected in the words and actions of our leadership.

As current Activision Blizzard employees, we are holding a walkout to call on the executive leadership team to work with us on the following demands, in order to improve conditions for employees at the company, especially women, and in particular women of color and transgender women, nonbinary people, and other marginalized groups.

1. An end to mandatory arbitration clauses in all employee contracts, current and future. Arbitration clauses protect abusers and limit the ability of victims to seek restitution.

2. The adoption of recruiting, interviewing, hiring, and promotion policies designed to improve representation among employees at all levels, agreed upon by employees in a company-wide Diversity, Equity & Inclusion organization. Current practices have led to women, in particular women of color and transgender women, nonbinary people, and other marginalized groups that are vulnerable to gender discrimination not being hired fairly for new roles when compared to men.

3. Publication of data on relative compensation (including equity grants and profit sharing), promotion rates, and salary ranges for employees of all genders and ethnicities at the company. Current practices have led to aforementioned groups not being paid or promoted fairly.

4. Empower a company-wide Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion task force to hire a third party to audit ABK’s reporting structure, HR department, and executive staff. It is imperative to identify how current systems have failed to prevent employee harassment, and to propose new solutions to address these issues.

Source: https://kotaku.com/activision-blizzard-employees-plan-walkout-wednesday-to-1847362030

 

[Reality 71,859]

I just read an article about some of things people, particularly women, have been experiencing over there, and it's heartbreaking and disguting: https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/activision-blizzard-sued-by-california-over-frat-boy-culture

I'm a fan of Blizzard games too, which makes it even more sad. 

[RahrahWitch 6,948]

The sad thing is this isn't just Activision, It's the gaming industry in general. I've heard so many stories of abuse/discrimination/racism in the industry, It's so deep rooted it's disgusting.

I really hope that the spotlight being put on this can bring the start of some serious change to weed out the bad apples.

[phantasmas 9,924]

Just a reminder (especially to male gamers): please treat the employees who make your favorite games with compassion

because the alleged frat boy culture found in the workplace is also extremely prevalent in online game forums and on social media 

Spoiler

and the way some of these gamers talk to employees… these gamers have never gotten their asses beat and it shows 

 

[phantasmas 9,924]

19 minutes ago, Reality said:

I just read an article about some of things people, particularly women, have been experiencing over there, and it's heartbreaking and disguting: https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/activision-blizzard-sued-by-california-over-frat-boy-culture

I'm a fan of Blizzard games too, which makes it even more sad. 

Thanks! I meant to post more about this but I was in a rush

I’m hoping this company can reconcile with their abhorrent behavior and set an example for the rest of the gaming industry 

[phantasmas 9,924]

Activision Blizzard employees themselves have requested that those wishing to stand in solidarity with them to also donate to one of the following charities:

Black Girls Code - https://www.blackgirlscode.com

Futures Without Violence - https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org

Girls Who Code - https://girlswhocode.com

RAINN - https://www.rainn.org

Women In Animation - https://womeninanimation.org

Women in Games International - https://www.getwigi.com