Statement from CWA on Unfair Labor Practice Charge Against Activision Publishing Subsidiary Raven Software

(Middleton, Wis.) – Statement from Communications Workers of America (CWA) in regards to CWA’s filing of an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on behalf of GWA-CWA members at Raven Software, a video game studio and subsidiary under Microsoft/Activision Blizzard. The unfair labor practice charge alleges that the company’s disciplinary action against one of its bargaining committee members after discussing concerted union activity was in direct violation of Section 8 of the National Labor Relations Act. 

Earlier this week, upper management at Activision illegally disciplined a member of GWA-CWA’s bargaining committee, nearly five months after the member communicated with their manager about bargaining. During the lengthy investigation of this communication, Activision instructed the GWA-CWA member not to discuss the investigation or its outcome with anyone, presumably including her co-workers and the union.

This discipline and the prohibition on discussing the disciplinary investigation are clear violations of the National Labor Relations Act, which protects workers’ right to join together to improve their working conditions. Activision’s capricious and retaliatory enforcement of policies, including vaguely instructing workers to not discuss discipline or investigations, has a chilling effect and creates the impression of unlawful surveillance in the workplace.

Today, we have filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board to demand that Activision swiftly end its interference with workers’ rights and comply with the National Labor Relations Act.

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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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