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Activision Quality Assurance Workers Form Largest Gaming Union in U.S.
An impressive 600 individuals employed at Activision Publishing’s quality assurance department recently came together to establish the most extensive union within the U.S. gaming industry.
Supported by the Communications Workers of America, the employees conducted a successful vote and officially certified the outcome on Friday, resulting in the creation of the Activision Quality Assurance United – CWA union. These dedicated quality assurance professionals are responsible for testing games to identify and rectify bugs and serve as a common starting point for aspiring game developers.
Earlier, the CWA, after signing a labor neutrality agreement with Microsoft in 2022, have now overseen the acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft for a staggering $68.7 billion.
Tom Shelley, a technical requirements specialist and one of the primary organizers of the Activision Quality Assurance United, informed The Verge that the labor neutrality agreement, coupled with Microsoft’s takeover of Activision Blizzard last year, significantly facilitated their efforts towards unionization.
Microsoft’s Recognition and Prevailing Union Efforts
Microsoft duly acknowledged the newly formed union, having previously recognized a union comprising 300 QA workers at ZeniMax Online. In addition, Activision Blizzard boasts unions at Blizzard in Albany and Raven Software in Wisconsin. Remarkably, these developments are unfolding amidst a period of substantial layoffs within the gaming industry — with 8,000 reported this year alone and 10,500 in the preceding year.
The unionized workers are geographically dispersed across California, Texas, and Minnesota, collectively representing over 1,000 Microsoft employees. Organizational efforts at Activision have been underway since 2021, coinciding with a noteworthy lawsuit filed by the state of California (subsequently settled) citing prevalent cases of sexual misconduct.
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