A historic moment for labor rights in the video game industry: around 600 quality assurance (QA) employees at Activision Blizzard have successfully formed the largest video game union in the United States.
Known as Activision Quality Assurance United and organized with the Communications Workers of America (CWA), this achievement signals a shift in the gaming industry’s landscape.
The plight of QA workers
The video game industry is known for its grueling working conditions, with QA workers often bearing the brunt of crunch periods and tight deadlines.
These workers play a critical role in ensuring the quality of games before release, yet they’re frequently subject to:
- Low pay: QA workers are often amongst the lowest-paid employees in the development process, despite their essential contributions
- Job insecurity: QA positions are often temporary or contract-based, leaving workers with little job security
- Lack of recognition: The important work of QA teams frequently goes underappreciated and undervalued within the industry
The demanding nature of video game development, especially during pre-release periods, can lead to burnout and exhaustion, with QA being particularly vulnerable.
It’s not game over for workers’ rights
The creation of Activision Quality Assurance United – CWA reflects a growing movement for worker empowerment in the video game industry.
This isn’t an isolated event; unionization efforts have been gaining traction in recent years:
- Raven Software (2022): Workers at the Call of Duty developer secured union recognition
- Blizzard Albany (2022): QA testers followed suit, forming their own union shortly after
- ZeniMax Workers United (2023): This unionization effort made history as the first-ever within Microsoft
Activision workers’ path to unionization
Tom Shelley, a technical requirements specialist and organizer for Activision Quality Assurance United, sheds light on the unionization process in an interview with The Verge.
He highlights the positive impact of Microsoft’s labor neutrality agreement and the acquisition:
“This has been an emergent effort…in response to the opportunities we’ve had to freely organize following the merger”.
Shelley also emphasizes the historical undervaluation of QA roles: “As QA workers, we often have the weakest protections and lowest pay…even though our work is integral to the success of …the titles we make”.
Shelley expresses hope that Microsoft’s decision to voluntarily recognize the union will inspire a new era of organizing efforts within the industry and beyond.
Featured image credit: rawpixel.com/Freepik.
