2021 has been an unpleasant year to be an Activision Blizzard executive. The company’s culture of sexual harassment is now a matter of public record, with even CEO Bobby Kotick facing serious allegations. After a year of lawsuits, protests, calls for boycotts, and public condemnations, one might expect Activision Blizzard to at least keep its head down through the end of the year.
However, that hasn’t happened, with Activision-Blizzard once again courting controversy. This time, the company’s facing online backlash after sending out an email that discourages Blizzard employees from unionizing.
The email went out earlier today, December 10th, and is signed by Activision Blizzard’s Chief Administrative Officer Brian Bulatao, a former CIA and later State Department official. Multiple sources quickly shared his message on Twitter, including Blizzard Senior Test Analyst and workers' rights advocate Jessica Gonzalez. The email itself begins by thanking Blizzard employees and reminding them of the company’s recent decision to move 500 temporary workers to full-time and implement what it calls a “zero-tolerance policy” for workplace sexual harassment. It conveniently glosses over the company’s willingness to sweep complaints under the rug for years. The fact that Bobby Kotick retains his position as CEO further calls into question the company’s sincerity.
Regardless, the meat of the email begins in paragraph two, which addresses a recent statement endorsed by The Communications Workers of America encouraging Activision Blizzard Employees to apply for union membership. The CWA is the largest North American labor union specializing in communications and media, with over 700,000 members in the US and Canada. Historically, the union’s specialized in the telecommunications sector, though it has expanded to include several related industries.
Blizzard’s email encourages employees to “consider the consequences” of organizing under the banner of the CWA. The message acknowledges that Activision Blizzard employees have a legal right to unionize if they vote to. However, and perhaps unsurprisingly, Blizzard’s email comes out against unionization. Instead, Bulatao’s email emphasizes that Blizzard employees would be granting the CWA the right to negotiate with Activision Blizzard on their behalf. Bulatao’s message argues that “Achieving our workplace culture aspirations will best occur through active, transparent dialogue between leaders and employees that we can act upon quickly.”
Of course, that claim relies on Activision Blizzard acting in good faith when dealing with its employees. Given everything the public’s learned about Blizzard specifically and the AAA games industry in general, it’s understandable not everyone finds the company’s arguments compelling. Still, unionization in the gaming industry remains controversial, and it’s Activision Blizzard employees who’ll need to make the decision.