The CWA responded to Activision’s allegations by calling the move “lively” that “Activision excluded Raven Software QA employees, who were at the forefront of this effort, from these benefits.” Activision responded to Kotaku citing Labor Board v. Exchange Parts Co., 375 US 405 (1964), according to which employers could violate the National Labor Relations Act if they provided financial benefits to its employees in order to motivate them to vote against the union. Original story: Activision Blizzard has announced that it will convert nearly 1,100 US-based QA temporary and temporary employees to full-time positions. The company says the change will increase Activision Publishing’s total full-time staff by 25%, following a recent conversion of nearly 500 contractors into full-time employees. However, a few dozen members of the QA team at Raven Software did not participate in this transition, so they left the studio. Along with the transition to full-time, QA employees will increase their hourly wage to $ 20 per hour and will be able to participate in the company bonus program and access full-time benefits. Activision Blizzard Lawsuit Timeline: The Story So Far Activision Publishing COO Josh Taub and Blizzard CEO Mike Ybarra emailed staff today announcing the change. Both cite the need to support continuous and live games as a reason for change. “Over the last two years, Call of Duty has expanded and evolved. Our growth cycles have been transformed from an annual release to an “always active” model, says Taub. In response to the greater commitment, we have increased our live service activity across all platforms… In light of these changes, and as we look forward to our ambitious plans for the future, we are further improving the way our development teams work together. “ In a separate email, Ybarra told Blizzard staff: “Our ability to deliver the great Blizzard quality games our players expect is vital to ensuring that we exceed player expectations. “Over the last 6 months, I have had the opportunity to listen and interact with members of our QA team and have had several meetings where I have outlined my philosophy on contract / full time roles.” The move follows the growing efforts of trade unions across Activision Blizzard, first with the ABetterABK Workers Alliance, a collective of workers that has organized various mobilizations across the company to support better working conditions. Raven QA employees also formed Blizzard’s first club earlier this year. Matt TM Kim is the IGN News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.
