Activision Blizzard to pay $54m to settle discrimination lawsuit
Activision Blizzard will pay a $54 million settlement to end a 2021 sex discrimination lawsuit.
As first reported by the Wall Street Journal (via VentureBeat), the publisher – which was acquired by Microsoft in October – entered into an agreement with the California Civil Rights Department to settle the case, which is related to claims of unequal compensation and promotion practices on the basis of sex from 2015-2020.
Activision Blizzard will pay as much as $46.75 million to female employees who claimed they’d received inequitable pay during this period. $9.125 million will cover attorney’s fees.
Under the agreement, which is subject to court approval, Activision Blizzard will take additional steps to help ensure fair pay and promotion practices at the company, according to the CRD.
The California CRD agreed that “no court or any independent investigation has substantiated” any claims of “systemic or widespread sexual harassment at Activision Blizzard,” nor that “Activision Blizzard senior executives ignored, condoned or tolerated a culture of systemic, harassment, retaliation or discrimination.”
The settlement also said that its investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing by Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, or its board.
The state’s expert witnesses testified that a gender pay gap existed overall, but a pay disparity was not found among employees of the same rank.
“California remains deeply committed to promoting and enforcing the civil rights of women in the workplace,” said CRD Director Kevin Kish.
“If approved by the court, this settlement agreement represents a major step forward and will bring direct relief to Activision Blizzard workers. At the California Civil Rights Department, we will continue to do our part
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