A new report reveals that Activision Blizzard is making five-figure payments to hundreds of staff affected by its recent harassment lawsuits. Similar claims have also been made about Riot Games, the company behind League of Legends, which was embroiled in a similarly problematic set of circumstances over the past couple of years.
Though Activision claimed that there was no widespread harassment culture at the company, the EEOC eventually decided this wasn't the case, and settlement deals were reached with the affected employees. As the latest information has revealed, these deals have been fairly substantial.
According to Axios, Activision and Riot Games are paying off substantial amounts of money to people who experienced some form of harassment during their employment. Riot Games will be paying $100 million total, which amounts to between $2500 and $5000 for 1,548 of the harassed female employees, as well as "additional payments of up to $40,000" in select instances. Activision Blizzard's settlement was for $18 million, and the majority has now been distributed to "hundreds" of its employees with payments "ranging from five to six figures."
The stories of abuse at Riot Games are not new and eventually led to a gender discrimination lawsuit, resulting in the aforementioned slew of settlement deals. This information not only illustrates just how costly this whole issue has been for Riot, but also how widespread harassment must have been at the company, with hundreds of women affected by some employees' problematic behavior. Some people, it's worth pointing out, did opt out of the deal.
Activision had its share of sexual harassment lawsuits, too. According to Axios, any money remaining of the $18 million paid by Activision is set to be donated to the non-profit organization Reboot Representation. A federal judge approved this deal, though it was panned by those who felt that the fund was far too small, considering the extent of harassment and the number of Activision employees affected by it.
After news broke that the CMA is blocking Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, it became clear that it's unlikely the company's recent woes will wrap up anytime soon. Activision's stock has taken a nosedive in the aftermath of the decision. Though the publisher is still an exceedingly profitable venture, its plans to join Microsoft have been momentarily halted, and only time will tell what's next in store for Activision Blizzard.
Source: Axios