Following yesterday's walkout, a new letter issued by Activision Blizzard employees says the latest response from Activision CEO Bobby Kotick "fails to address critical elements at the heart of employee concerns."
Yesterday, Activision Blizzard staff walked out of the office in protest of management's "tone-deaf" response to last week's lawsuit brought against the game developer from the state of California's DFEH. The suit alleges the company of having a "frat boy workplace culture" where male employees regularly engage in inappropriate behavior towards women, with documented instances of sexual assault, harassment, racism, and in one case, suicide.
Activision Blizzard’s initial response was to deny the allegations, saying they painted a “false” and “distorted” picture of Blizzard’s past. Dozens of Blizzard employees then took to social media to share stories that often confirmed allegations in the lawsuit, eventually leading to an open letter aimed at refuting management’s denial of the allegations and the organization of an employee walkout.
Yesterday's letter, obtained by IGN, follows that walkout and makes four additional demands of Activision Blizzard executive management.
- The end of forced arbitration for all employees
- Worker participation in oversight of hiring and promotion policies
- The need for greater pay transparency to ensure equality
- Employee selection of a third party to audit HR and other company processes
"Today's walkout demonstrated that this is not a one-time event that our leaders can ignore," the letter added. "We will not return to silence; we will not be placated by the same processes that led us to this point."
Forced arbitration refers to hiring practices typical of US companies where employees sign away their right to sue in the event of experiencing harassment on the job. It's a controversial practice that has been used in the tech industry to limit company exposure to legal liabilities, but some say it also protects bad actors and creates a toxic work environment–especially for female employees.
"This is the beginning of an enduring movement in favor of better labor conditions for all employees,” the letter added, “especially women, in particular women of color and transgender women, nonbinary people, and other marginalized groups."
Next: Ubisoft Employees "Loudly Declare Our Solidarity" With Activision Blizzard Workers In Open Letter
