Blizzard Union Ratifies Historic Contract With Microsoft
Nearly 1,900 Blizzard Entertainment employees have ratified their first union contract with Microsoft. The agreement includes significant protections against layoffs and mandates company negotiation on generative AI use. This landmark deal is being hailed as a potential new standard for the gaming industry.
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Blizzard must now 'discuss, evaluate, and bargain' its AI usage with its developers
Blizzard Entertainment's union, in partnership with the Communications Workers of America, has secured a new contract that requires the company to discuss and bargain over the implementation of generative AI in the workplace. This landmark agreement, impacting around 1900 workers, also includes wage increases, job protections, and enhanced severance for layoffs, offering a significant victory for labor rights in the gaming industry.
Almost 1,900 Blizzard workers ratify first union contract with Microsoft
Blizzard Entertainment employees, represented by newly formed unions, have ratified their first collective bargaining agreement with parent company Microsoft. The contract, lasting four to five years, includes protections for generative AI use, crediting, remote work, and layoffs, establishing a 60-day notice period for job cuts and 14 months of recall rights. Meanwhile, Activision's subsidiary King has rejected a collective bargaining agreement with Swedish trade unions.
Blizzard Workers Win Historic Union Contract That Could Set A New Standard For Game Developers
Blizzard Entertainment employees, represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA), have secured a historic union contract with Microsoft. The agreement includes workplace flexibility, guaranteed wage increases, AI job automation guardrails, and job-recall rights for laid-off employees. This contract is seen as a potential blueprint for other video game industry unions.
Almost 1,900 Blizzard workers vote through a "historic" union contract securing protections against layoffs and gen-AI
Approximately 1,900 unionized workers at Blizzard Entertainment have ratified their first contract, securing protections against layoffs and mandating bargaining over the use of generative AI. This historic agreement provides enhanced severance and recall rights for employees across multiple game teams, including World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Diablo.
Unionised Blizzard workers vote through contract giving them a say on genAI adoption and protection against layoffs
Unionized Blizzard Entertainment workers have ratified a new contract that requires the company to negotiate with them over the use of generative AI tools and provides protections against layoffs. The contract covers approximately 1900 staff and includes provisions for recall rights for laid-off employees and additional severance pay. This development occurs amidst ongoing workforce reductions at Microsoft's gaming division.
"It's a new day at Blizzard": Union wins historic contract protecting 1,900 World of Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch, and more workers as Microsoft plans another 1,600 layoffs
Blizzard Entertainment union members, represented by the CWA, have secured a new contract covering 1,900 workers across titles like World of Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch. The agreement includes strong protections against layoffs and mandates negotiation over the use of AI in game development. This comes as parent company Microsoft plans further layoffs across Xbox.
Nearly two thousand Blizzard developers secure a union contract that includes AI safeguards and layoff protection
Nearly two thousand unionized Blizzard Entertainment developers, represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA), have secured a new contract. This agreement includes wage increases, a hybrid work week, and significant protections regarding layoffs and the use of artificial intelligence in development. CWA president Claude Cummings Jr. lauded the contract as a new industry standard.
Blizzard union workers ratify historic contract covering 1,900 employees
Employees at Blizzard Entertainment, a subsidiary of Microsoft, have ratified a new union contract covering 1,900 workers represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA). The historic agreement includes protections for AI usage, layoff recall rights, improved severance, wage increases, and a three-day hybrid work week, setting a new industry standard.
