Call of Duty QA workers vote to unionize
Brendan Sinclair
Managing Editor
Friday 21st January 2022
QA testers at Raven Software have voted to unionize with the Communication Workers of America, according to a Polygon report.
A CWA representative told the site that 78% of eligible QA workers voted in favor of unionization, and they are asking Activision Blizzard to voluntarily recognize the union, which is calling itself the Game Workers Alliance. The bargaining unit would consist of 34 employees.
"We ask that Activision Blizzard management respect Raven QA workers by voluntarily recognizing CWA's representation without hesitation," CWA secretary-treasurer Sara Steffens said. "A collective bargaining agreement will give Raven QA employees a voice at work, improving the games they produce and making the company stronger. Voluntary recognition is the rational way forward."
An Activision Blizzard representative did not immediately respond to a GamesIndustry.biz request for comment.
A number of Raven Software QA employees have been on strike since early December, demanding that contracted members of the QA team that were recently laid off -- the publisher said it declined to extend their agreements -- be offered the chance to return in a full-time position.
The strike is ongoing, with the ABK Workers Alliance organizing a strike fund that has raised more than $370,000 to date.
Earlier this week, Activision Blizzard told the SEC it was unaware of any strike or pending labor union activity at the company.
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