Activision Blizzard allegedly threatened staff and enforced a social media policy that conflicted with workers' rights according to a new report.
Bloomberg reports (via ResetEra) that prosecutors on the U.S. Labor Board have determined that Activision Blizzard has illegally threatened its staff and enforced a social media policy that interfered with their rights as workers. Additionally, the Raven Software union vote is to be tallied later today.
Activision Blizzard's Labor Troubles Continue
The latest looming NLRB complaint alleges that Activision Blizzard has breached workers' rights by threatening them and enforcing a social media policy that further impacted their rights. Activision Blizzard has been asked to arrange a settlement. Should it fail to do so, the National Labor Relations Board will issue a complaint against the company.
Should the complaint go forward, it will be reviewed by NLRB members in Washington, D.C., and then in federal court. NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo is seeking to set a precedent for how a company can restrict the social media posts of its employees, among other issues.
This latest complaint comes as Activision Blizzard is in the process of being acquired by Microsoft in a deal that was announced earlier this year. The announcement of the acquisition led to a shareholder lawsuit; however, shareholders ultimately made the decision to approve the Microsoft acquisition in late April 2022. The process of Microsoft acquiring the company has yet to be completed.
Raven Software Union Vote Results Expected Today
In other Activision Blizzard news, the Raven Software union vote is expected to be tallied today.
Raven Software announced its unionization efforts earlier this year. If this vote succeeds, it will be the "first major video game union in the U.S." according to Jason Schreier of Bloomberg on Twitter. Anywhere from 21-28 employees are expected to participate in the vote.
Update (May 23, 2022 - 4:05 PM ET) - Jason Schreier at Bloomberg reports that the Raven Software Union Vote has been successful.
"It's now official: testers at Activision-owned Raven Software have voted to form the U.S. video game industry's first major union. There were 19 votes for and 3 votes against," Schreier said on Twitter.
"Next, this group of Raven testers will set out to negotiate a contract with Activision. Based on how Activision has reacted to Raven's union efforts so far, safe to say the coming negotiations will be neither short nor easy."
