Blizzard Quality Assurance Workers Ratify Video Game Union Contract With Microsoft

NATIONWIDE — A strong majority of quality assurance workers at Blizzard’s Albany, N.Y., and Austin, Texas, locations — represented by Communications Workers of America (CWA) Locals 1118 and 6215, respectively — overwhelmingly voted to ratify a union contract at Microsoft, ensuring lasting protections in the workplace and marking the third union contract at the company after ZeniMax workers ratified a contract in late June and Raven Software workers ratified a contract in August of last year.

Bargaining with Microsoft began with Albany-based members in May 2023. During contract negotiations, union bargaining committees in Albany and Austin reached an agreement with Microsoft to combine the two bargaining units, focusing on shared priorities. The contract will cover over 60 workers in a range of Quality Assurance roles.

“At a time when layoffs are hitting our industry hard, today is another big step in building a better future for video game workers at every level,” said CWA Local 1118 member and Blizzard Albany quality analyst Brock Davis. “For quality assurance testers, this contract provides us wages to live on, increased job security benefits, and guardrails around artificial intelligence in the workplace.”

The three-year union contract includes:

• Guaranteed wage increases for the duration of the contract;
• Enhanced regulations around the usage of AI and generative AI in the workplace, ensuring that AI supports, not replaces or harms, workers;
• Protections on fair crediting and name recognition on shipped video games;
• Reasonable disability accommodations without discrimination or retaliation;
• Provides protection to immigrant workers from unfair discipline and loss of seniority while streamlining legal verification;
• Restrictions on mandatory “crunch time” or excessive overtime hours.

“After nearly two decades in the video game industry, it feels great to work with my fellow union members in ratifying a fair contract that makes it easier to see a real, long-term career in this work,” said CWA Local 6215 member and Blizzard Austin senior quality analyst Matt Gant. “This agreement gives us a better working environment with increased pay, benefits, and layoff protections that include recall rights and ensures that quality assurance work remains a stable and respected role for the workers who will build games long after us.”

“Bringing the Austin and Albany units together in bargaining was a powerful expression of shared values and collective action. By forming a unified bargaining voice, our members strengthened their ability to secure meaningful improvements for everyone in their roles,” said CWA Local 6215 President Ron Swaggerty. “Video game workers continue to set the pace for what organizing and collective bargaining can achieve in 2026 and beyond.”

“For more than two years, our members in Albany were clear about the standards they wanted to set in the workplace,” said CWA Local 1118 President John Van Denburgh III. “Bargaining alongside our union siblings in Austin gave our members the opportunity to bring those priorities to Microsoft respectfully, reaching an agreement that reflects the needs of quality assurance workers in both locations.”

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About CODE-CWA

The Campaign to Organize Digital Employees (CODE-CWA) is a network of worker-organizers and their staff working every single day to build the voice and power necessary to ensure the future of the tech, game, and digital industries in the United States and Canada. CODE-CWA is a project of the Communications Workers of America which represents hundreds of thousands of workers throughout tech, media, telecom, and other industries who stand together to fight for justice on the job and in our communities.

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