Diablo Video Game Workers Form Latest Wall-to-Wall Union with CWA

 
CWA members travelled to the Activision Blizzard campus in Irvine, Calif., to speak with Diablo workers after they secured a majority for union recognition.

Last week, over 450 video game workers behind the popular video game series Diablo voted strongly in favor of union representation. The unit, which includes game developers, artists, designers, engineers, and support staff across the Diablo franchise, is one of the largest wall-to-wall unions at a Microsoft-owned studio. The workers will be members of CWA Local 9510 in Irvine, Calif.; CWA Local 1118 in Albany, N.Y.; and CWA Local 6215 in Austin, Texas.

“My entire career as a developer has seen my peers and I paying the ‘passion tax’ for working in an industry that we love,” said Nav Bhatti, Team 3 Senior Software Engineer and organizing committee member. “At some point you have to choose between fight or flight, and forming a union is us doing just that—standing our ground in the industry.”

This latest organizing update shows that the wave of unions at video game studios has accelerated across the industry. Since last July, when over 500 World of Warcraft developers formed the first wall-to-wall unit at Microsoft, over 3,500 Microsoft workers have organized with CWA, fighting for fair compensation, job security, and a seat at the table to improve workplace conditions.

Read the full press release here.

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This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.