Blizzard’s World of Warcraft Team Forms Largest Union in Microsoft Gaming History
Blizzard’s World of Warcraft team, consisting of 500 developers, has successfully unionized. This makes it the largest group within Microsoft’s gaming teams to unionize so far. Around 1,750 employees in Microsoft’s gaming divisions are now part of unions, Bloomberg reported.
The World of Warcraft developers will now be represented by the Communication Workers of America (CWA). This unionization marks the first “wall-to-wall” union at Activision Blizzard. The CWA described this as a “key inflection point” for video game worker organizing.
Why Unionize Now?
The union aims to improve pay standards, remote work policies, and workplace diversity at Blizzard. The team hopes their move will set a standard for other developers in the industry. “It’s exciting to potentially raise the standards of the entire industry,” said Kathryn Friesen, a World of Warcraft designer.
Microsoft has once again recognized the union voluntarily, as it has with others in the past. The company pledged not to interfere with unionization efforts. This follows the recent unionization of 240 Bethesda Game Studios employees working on Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6.
CWA spokesperson Tom Smith highlighted the significance of this unionization. “Unionizing one of the most successful games ever signifies the rising power of worker solidarity,” he said. This movement reflects a broader shift in the gaming industry towards organized labor.
The next step for the union is to negotiate contracts, focusing on pay equity, remote work, and workplace equity. The World of Warcraft team remains optimistic about the future.
