Paradox accepts finding of independent audit, vows to "leave no stone unturned"
In late 2021, reports emerged that painted a bleak picture of things at Paradox Interactive, most notably thata majority of the company's female employees reported 'mistreatment' of one kind or another in an internal survey. This was followed by additional interviews with former staff who basically said, 'Yep, this place has a problem'.
In response, Paradox commissioned Gender Balance, a Swedish firm specializing in issues of discrimination, harassment, and equality, to conduct an audit of the company. The various employee unions agreed with this choice. That report, written by Paul Bengtsson and Anneli Häyrén and titled 'Review of organisational capability to respond to discrimination, bullying and victimisation at Paradox Interactive', has now been published.
I'll go into more detail on the report below, but some of the main findings are:
While the audit «expected, and also found, low levels of physical harassment» there were «a smaller number of cases» characterized as «more severe.» The firm said it was unable to describe the cases in the report due to their «sensitive nature» but noted that «severe instances of discrimination did not appear to be common.»
In terms of what the report's authors call «grey zone abusive behavior,» examples of this behaviour given by Paradox employees include «unsolicited compliments or comments about their appearance, having their competency questioned in a way that does not happen for male colleagues, or seeing the recurring use of gendered and negative stereotypes.»
Several women reported «avoiding working with or minimizing their contact with certain persons, putting up a harsh facade, or having to advertise that they are in a relationship in order to not receive unwanted advances
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