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Activision Blizzard refuses to acknowledge Proletariat Games union without NLRB vote

Proletariat and Activision Blizzard leadership had a clash of opinion with Communication Workers of America, who accused the company of union-busting tactics.

TJ Denzer

January 11, 2023 12:15 PM

Image via Activision Blizzard

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Activision Blizzard once again appears to be standing in the way of unionization within one of its studios, this time being former Spellbreak developer Proletariat. The studio was moving to unionize with the help of Communications Workers of America (CWA), but Activision Blizzard has issued a statement that it will not currently acknowledge the union until a new formal vote conducted with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is carried out. The CWA has claimed this is part of union-strategy by Activision Blizzard to stifle worker organization.

Activision Blizzard and Proletariat leadership shared a statement on the Proletariat studio website on January 9, 2023. In the release titled “Everyone Deserves a Vote,” Activision and Proletariat management lay out the claim that it found many of its employees would prefer an anonymous vote and it has filed with the NLRB for that vote to happen.

Activision Blizzard and Proletariat go on to explain their reasoning for the action, claiming it’s to make sure all voices are reasonably heard:

This statement and action caught the attention of Communications Workers of America, which was working with Proletariat workers to unionize. CWA disagreed with Activision Blizzard’s stance and decision on the matter, accusing the company of utilizing a union-busting gameplan it has carried out before in other instances.

The CWA points to the recently successful unionization vote at ZeniMax Media as an event that spurred Activision Blizzard to act against unionization at Proletariat. The studio was acquired by Activision Blizzard in June 2022 and has since worked on World of Warcraft, including the recently released Dragonflight expansion.

That said, it looks like unionization at Proletariat is hitting a wall that won’t be cleared until the anonymous NLRB vote takes place. As we continue to follow this story for further updates, keep your eyes here at Shacknews for new details as they drop.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.