Microsoft recently got the seal of union approval from the Communication Workers of America (CWA) when it agreed to be ‘labor neutral’ during ongoing unionization efforts at Activision, but now it seems the company has decided to choose a side, and it’s not the employees.
According to a report from Game File, a group of Call of Duty developers from the freshly formed union within Activision’s Raven Software Studio have filed a complaint that accuses the publisher (and by extension of ownership, Microsoft) of “Refusal to Bragin/Bad Fath Bargaining” during negotiations.
While the full complaint has not been made public yet, and collective bargaining negotiations tend to be a contentious affair, it’s unclear now, to what degree Microsoft is having a direct hand in slow walking or negatively impacting efforts.
With that said, CWA president Claude Cummings Jr. expressed his dismay with how Microsoft’s stewardship of the Activision union negotiations has gone up until now. “Ater Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, our members were optimistic that they would progress quickly to a first contract at Raven Software. Unfortunately, that has not happened. We encourage Microsoft to address the concerns raised in the unfair labor practice charge and make reaching a fair agreement a priority.”
When asked about the complaint, a Microsoft spokesperson responded with, “the company is committed to negotiating in good faith.”
Microsoft hasn’t been linked to any egregious union busting scandals to date, however, an NLBR investigation did reveal that prior to its acquisition, Activision Blizzard had withheld raises from Raven employees as a form of retaliation for continued unionization efforts.
With Microsoft raising prices on its Game Pass subscription services, and shedding 1,900 employees across its various gaming studios, adding union busting to the pile of its negative press should be the last thing the company wants associated with its brand in the gaming community.
