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genovefa fedelmid: Sep 28, 2016; I'd like to see the "Cat bus" do THIS

https://www.pcgamer.com/activision-blizzard-women-interviews/

Some quotes from this article that stand out to me:

quote:

The closer a woman worked with certain "rockstar" developers (who at times could behave with the general arrogance implied by the word, making unreasonable demands or throwing tantrums) and high-level management, the more warnings she'd start to hear from other women, says Iris. The basic warning was: "Watch out for this person if they start drinking." A more specific warning was: "Don't go to anything this person invites you to." After work social events could take unexpected turns, she says.

I really want to know who these people are... we know the things Afrasiabi did, but I want to hear more names. IMO these men are getting away with it. I assume the ones that got sacked a while ago are some of them but I doubt its all of them

quote:

And women who spoke up, whether about unfair treatment or to criticize creative decisions such as oversexualized character designs, had a "target on their back," says Iris. When she criticized a creative decision that had a racist connotation, for example, she says that "opportunities started to plummet" for her.

"That's the point that really upsets me," says Iris. "There were people who saw, people who knew, and they just never did anything. And if you spoke up, or you pushed back, then you were a problem. The rungs on your ladder were taken."

No doubt why the wow team is now falling over itself to plaster over paintings of women with bowls of fruit.

quote:

"There are some genuine people in leadership positions" at Activision Blizzard, says Violet. She loved one of the teams she worked on and liked the boss she reported to prior to quitting. But she was not at all shocked by the allegations in the California lawsuit, and doesn't trust executives like Kotick or Townsend to improve the company.

I'd also like to know who these good bosses are, tbh.

quote:

In the immediate aftermath of the lawsuit, Violet didn't feel that Blizzard leadership was making a genuine effort to change the company. People were fired, but the email that announced the departures to employees didn't explain why.

"If [the firings] meant something, they would be like, 'Here's what these people did. Don't do this,'" said Violet.

This. Quietly letting people go just sucks. Give their potential future victims a chance by making it publicly known why these people with public personas are no longer there

quote:

In October, Kotick said that Activision Blizzard strives to have the "strictest harassment and non-retaliation policies of any employer." Specifics about recent HR investigations that led to the dismissal of 20-plus employees have not been disclosed.

"We are aware of the greater desire for transparency from the company, particularly in this area," an Activision Blizzard spokesperson told PC Gamer. "As part of our ongoing commitment to our employees, we are continuing to consider ways in which we can be more transparent, especially when it comes to workplace investigations, and we are moving in that direction."

quote:

Holly joined Blizzard early in her career, and after she left Blizzard for a new job in the game industry, she was astonished by how different it was. "I honestly cannot see anyone doing 90% of the poo poo that went on at Blizzard [at my new company]," she says. Although she didn't directly experience sexual harassment, she heard stories, and says she witnessed drunk coworkers talk about women like "frat bros," a term used in the California lawsuit.

"Everything was so normalized [at Activision Blizzard]. I thought this was the entire industry, an industry-wide problem, and to some degree it is, but I'm being treated way better than I was at Blizzard."

quote:

In contrast, Holly is much happier with her current compensation, and says that "there's a lot more communication" from the top at her current company. She's hearing a similar story from others who left the company in recent years.

"Whether they were laid off or left voluntarily, every single person I know is in a better position than they were during their time at Blizzard," says Holly.

Saying 'it's everywhere' or 'its the whole industry' is giving Blizz a pass. I truly believe with everything I've read that they seem to be a particularly egregious example.

quote:

The problems that led Holly and the others to leave Blizzard started a long time ago, but Holly says that the reputational collapse that led to today started around the time of BlizzCon 2018, which included the infamous Diablo Immortal announcement. That BlizzCon was demoralizing, she says, and the sense that Blizzard was a "cool game company" where everyone was "family" started to crack.

As trust in "Blizzard magic" faded, employees "stopped putting up with the behavior and pay discrepancies," she says.

At the same time and just a little ways up the coast from Blizzard's Irvine headquarters, Santa Monica-based developer Riot Games was being scrutinized following sexism and harassment allegations.

"People think Riot is bad?" Violet recalls thinking at the time. "We knew the reckoning was coming."

I mean... yeah.

# ¿ Jan 13, 2022 10:44

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# ¿ Apr 26, 2024 03:16

genovefa fedelmid: Sep 28, 2016; I'd like to see the "Cat bus" do THIS

I don't really get how unions work in the US. Here you join the union that is appropriate for your job. Your employer never knows unless you tell them because it's none of their business. You stay in that union while ever you stay in that field. It seems unions are workplace specific in the US? Except there are also unions that seem like the way they are here too, like the entertainment industry unions. Why don't the games industry workers as a whole make a union similar to the actors, writers, crew unions that seem pretty powerful in Hollywood?

# ¿ Jan 27, 2022 00:58

genovefa fedelmid: Sep 28, 2016; I'd like to see the "Cat bus" do THIS

Bobfromsales posted:

Unions that are long established argely work like you'd expect.

Creating a new union is something else entirely.

Decades of anti-union propaganda have created very little positive sentiment for unions among the working class. Something like only 7% of workers are part of unions.

This makes sense.

and ty Kanos and Craptacular for the further info. I get it now... technically there's nothing stopping the unions from being a national thing, it's just a monumental social (and legal) challenge.

# ¿ Jan 27, 2022 06:08

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