Activision Blizzard workers went on strike, alleging sexual harassment and discrimination

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activision blizzard.jpeg
activision blizzard.jpeg

Activision Blizzard, a video game development company that has titles such as Call of Duty, Guitar Hero and World of Warcraft, among many others known, is going through a difficult time internally.

Today, Wednesday July 28, its workforce began a one-day strike to demand from the company better conditions for the women on its team in terms of their work environment and the competitive growth opportunities they can access.

One Day Strike at Activision Blizzard

Although the protest will be held remotely, there will also be an in-person rally at Blizzard’s studio in Irvine, California.

This measure is contextualized in the midst of a judicially active lawsuit, issued by the California Department of Housing and Fair Employment, which holds Activision blizzar responsible for cases of sexual harassment and employment discrimination against its employees. Among the accusations issued, they highlight the payment of unequal salaries and practices typical of a sexist culture, including acts of harassment by drunk male employees on their female colleagues in their cubicles. Another of the critical points mentioned refers to a person who was part of this team and who died by suicide, allegedly due to being the object of repeated sexual harassment.

According to what was reported by Axios, based on a letter signed by more than 2,000 Activision Blizzard employees, this action comes coupled with a list of demands towards the company, including an independent investigation and the adoption of new recruiting, hiring and promotion policies, that improve representation in all levels of the company.

“It is imperative to identify how current systems have failed to prevent employee harassment, and to propose new solutions to address these problems”, the workers said in the statement that Axios had access to.

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Activision Blizzard’s response

Through a letter Posted on his company’s investor portal, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick tried to put cold cloths on this critical moment, offering some answers. This, after another senior executive of the company catalog this accusation as “distorted”, “false”, “without merit” and “out of date.”

Kotick embraced the mistakes made in managing this crisis, promising a shift in focus. “Every voice is important, and we will do a better job of listening now and in the future. Our initial responses to the problems we faced together, and to your concerns, were, frankly, deaf. “ commented on his message.

Specifically, he assured that each and every one of the accusations issued will continue to be investigated and that more resources will be dedicated to ensure that the process of selecting candidates for positions considers a broader universe.

Also, it defined as company policy the measure of dismissing any manager “Found to have impeded the integrity of our processes for assessing claims and imposing appropriate consequences”. Activision Blizzard asked the firm WilmerHale to review its policies, in order to make the necessary in-depth corrections.