The state of California has filed a lawsuit against Activision Blizzard for the allegedly toxic workplace culture of the company that has been described as a strongly male-dominated workplace.
On July 20, 2021, Activision Blizzard has landed in the eye of the American justice storm for the strong accusations made against the company, accused of having a sexist and discriminatory work environment against female employees on numerous occasions, also claiming that sexual harassment incidents at Blizzard.
The cause, reported by Bloomberg Lawclaims that Activision Blizzard offices had a “Brotherhood culture of the workplace” which included many shocking incidents hushed up – until just a few days ago. The lawsuit claims that male employees “They consume copious amounts of alcohol while in the office and often engage in inappropriate behavior towards female employees.”
The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing also claims that Activision Blizzard discriminated against female employees providing lower wages, benefits and contracts than male counterparts. The lawsuit alleges that employees have suffered numerous sexual harassment incidents while working in Blizzard offices.
Some female employees who worked on World of Warcraft at Blizzard also claim that they worked closely with male employees, some of them department supervisors, who consistently held provocative attitudes towards them, flirting on multiple occasions during the day. Another section of the report also claims that a male employee relegated his responsibilities to a co-worker in order to have more time to play Call of Duty.
One of the most chilling allegations reported by those responsible for the cause states that an employee committed suicide during a company trip with her supervisor, a male. The lawsuit alleges that the employee suffered extensive sexual harassment within the company, and that Activision Blizzard did not respond in any way to her allegations.
The lawsuit also alleges that male employees shared explicit sexual content at work parties, including explicit images between them.
Many of the incidents referenced in the text occurred at Activision Blizzard’s Blizzard Entertainment division, overseen by President J. Allen Barrack. Allen Barrack’s name is clearly mentioned in the lawsuit.
The Department of Fair Employment and Housing says it has attempted to partner with Activision Blizzard to address the issues in recent years, including through 2021, but was unsatisfied with Activision’s responses. The department felt that the company had failed to adequately address situations and inequalities in the workplace.
A few hours after the filing of the case, Activision Blizzard released a lengthy comment, denying the serious allegations that have been moved and even go so far as to point the finger at the bureaucrats of the state of California – in the last period at the center of a war against large companies that are progressively moving away from the state.
Activision Blizzard’s statement directly invokes the California lawsuit for raising the employee’s suicide in the lawsuit, saying it is “shameful,” but did not clarify the incident itself as claimed in the lawsuit.
The declaration ends like this:
We are confident in our ability to demonstrate our practices as an equal opportunity employer that fosters a supportive, diverse and inclusive work environment for our people.
You can read the entire statement below.
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