Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble Developers Form Union at Blizzard
After going through so many layoffs and project cancellations, now most workers of Hearthstone and the remaining ones from the Warcraft Rumble have voted to become unionized hence joining the Communications Workers of America (CWA). They are now the fifth group to successfully organize at the workplace in Blizzard.
Marking Another Wave of Organization at Blizzard
Now the union is for over 100 professionals-including software engineers, artists, designers, and QA testers. This decision is mainly due to the recent layoff of most staff in the Warcraft Rumble team and also to stop developing the game from now on into the future. The Microsoft Corporation-the parent company of Activision-Blizzard-has also recognized the union.
Beyond this vote, it joins efforts from earlier successful organizing in less than two months' time by the Diablo team, pushing to over 1900 unionized employees in Blizzard under CWA umbrella.
Developers Seek a Collective Voice for Real Solutions
Develpers involved with the organizing have shared what it has been that moved them.
"My coworkers, as individuals, have voiced many concerns over the years, but it is easy for any company to ignore individuals... We chose to organize in pursuit of a collective voice and a force of solidarity that the industry cannot ignore," said Dominic Calkosz, a game designer in the Hearthstone team.
"It will also mean real improvements to working conditions," said Carol Blean, a QA analyst and committee member. "I support our union because we deserve to be heard and respected," Blean stated, adding that, "Real solutions, not free therapy or relocation suggestions, are needed to address being overworked, underpaid, and forced into unreasonable choices."
Context of Industry-Wide Layoffs and Record Profits
It runs parallel to yet another development: Microsoft's acquisition of Activision-Blizzard at $68.7 billion, followed by thousands of layoffs across the company and the cancellation of a Blizzard title, a survival game that had been in development for over six years.
Most importantly, while there were substantial layoffs, CWA previously pointed to "Microsoft's record performance of $245 billion in revenue in 2024". Successful union votes within Blizzard form part of an overall trend by game developers to address issues of job security and exploitation within the industry.
