Activision Blizzard: QA testers have formed the largest gaming union in the USA

A group of approx 600 employees in the quality control sector Of Activision Blizzard voted favorably to create a union with the Communication Workers of America (CWA), becoming theActivision Quality Assurance United (AQAU)as well as the largest union in the US gaming industry.

This is the first union formed within Activision Blizzard after the company's acquisition by Microsoft. It includes Activision Blizzard QA employees in Texas, Minnesota and California and is independent of Zenimax, Raven Software and Blizzard Albany.

The group was also formed thanks toagreement entered into by CWA and Microsoft in 2022which provides that the Redmond company must have a “neutral approach” to workers' internal discussions on the formation of a union and not obstruct the necessary process.

The words of the newly formed Activision Quality Assurance United

“There wasn't a specific catalyst, but rather a recognition that, as quality control workers, we often have the lowest protections and wages of any worker in the industry, even though our work requires expertise , skill and is absolutely essential to the success of the companies we work in,” said Tom Shelley, a technical requirements specialist at Activision and a member of the newly formed AQAU, who later said that Microsoft didn't stand in the way in no way the formation of this union.

“The CWA Union Neutrality Agreement is a historic and unprecedented agreement for a technology company the size of Microsoft. By recognizing our union, Microsoft is keeping its promise to respect our ability to make our own decisions about union representation. We've seen no negative anti-union action, at a time when most U.S. companies — especially tech ones — routinely spend millions on union-busting consultants to prevent workers from speaking up for themselves. We hope this inspires other workers to form unions and raise industry expectations in terms of pay, benefits and respect for workers' rights.”

Among AQAU's objectives is to sit at the negotiating table with Microsoft for a new contract for the category of quality control employeesparticularly regarding better pay and benefits, increased promotion opportunities and a clear career development path.