Activision Blizzard has long been one of the biggest names in the gaming world. But over the last year or so, the company has encountered a near-constant string of controversy.
The issue goes back to a lawsuit from the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. The DFEH alleges that the company suffers from a toxic work environment where both women and other marginalized groups are treated differently.
In an attempt at damage control, the company named Jen Oneal as one of the studio’s co-heads. But she left soon after saying that she was paid less than her male counterpart.
And now, the company is experiencing walkouts after quality assurance workers at the Raven location were laid off. Those protests, which began yesterday, grew larger on day two.
The Raven team was joined in their protest by other QA groups across the country. The ABK Workers Alliance tweeted, “Today workers from Raven QA are walking out for the second day in a row. They are joined by workers from QATX, QAMN, and Blizzard QA. These workers are standing in solidarity with the statement Raven QA put forward yesterday. They are using the social media hashtag #WeAreRaven.”
And later in the day, the group posted, “In an unprecedented show of love and solidarity, all of Treyarch’s central QA has walked out. Thank you, for your devotion to your peers and bettering this industry.”
All over social media, there are calls to boycott Activision Blizzard games. And all attempts to weather the storm seem to be going sideways for the company.