Organization abroad: Union pushes and employee pushback aren’t limited to American video game companies.
- Workers at Canada-based Bioware—which itself is owned by Electronic Arts—have begun organizing with a Canadian labor group.
- Montreal-based Ubisoft is also facing internal strife and high-level departures over its workplace culture and focus on NFTs.
- Even Nintendo, the storied Japanese developer which has historically been tight-lipped about internal issues, was recently accused of union busting in a NLRB complaint filed by workers at Nintendo of America, per The Washington Post.
Generally, industry leaders have not been supportive of unionization efforts. Former president of Nintendo of America Reggie Fils-Aimé said in a recent interview that unions aren’t needed if employees are treated well, and Activision Blizzard sent an internal email to workers in December arguing against the need for a union.
- Workers have raised support for labor movements from fans on social media, a sign that consumers support improved working conditions at studios they follow. A crowdfunded strike fund for Activision employees, for example, has raised over $380,000.
Why this matters: Video game popularity is at an all-time high, prompting more brands and advertisers to eye the space than ever before.
- Public sentiment in favor of labor movements is at its highest point since 1965, per a September Gallup poll, and publishers looking to find advertising partners may run into trouble if their labor issues create brand safety concerns.