Microsoft and the Communications Workers of America announced on Monday an agreement to make it easier for employees to form a union at Activision Blizzard, a video game maker that Microsoft has acquired for $ 70 billion.
Under this agreement, which appears to be the first in the tech industry, Microsoft has agreed to remain neutral if any of Activision’s eligible US employees want to unite, and employees are no longer on the National Labor Relations Commission. You don’t have to petition for an election. ..The company has Approximately 7,000 employees In the United States, most are eligible to form unions under this arrangement.
A group of nearly 30 employees in one of Activision’s studios voted for the union through the May NLRB election, despite Activision’s opposition to holding the election. However, completing such a process can be time consuming, and unions and employers can spend months or even years in proceeding with the outcome.
Through the agreement, workers will be supervised by a neutral third party and will have access to a rapid process to the union. There, you can sign your card or secretly show your support for the union via an electronic platform.
“This process provides us and Microsoft with a way to hold this quote-free election without the time, effort and controversy associated with the NLRB election,” said Chris Shelton, Chairman of Communications Workers Union, in an interview. I am. ..
The union said the neutrality agreement resolved antitrust concerns about the takeover and now supported the deal, which Microsoft said would be completed by the end of June 2023.
Microsoft presidents Shelton and Brad Smith have suggested that the deal could pave the way for a broader union for the company and the industry as a whole. “This is a great opportunity for us to work with Chris and CWA to learn and innovate,” Smith said in an interview. Microsoft said it was ready to “build” a deal in the future, but did not specifically comment on whether it plans to extend the terms to other game workers at the company.
Under the agreement, Microsoft has indicated that it will refrain from aggressive anti-union campaigns if other Activision employees attempt to form a union. “In reality, that means we don’t jump in and try to put our thumbs up on the scale,” Smith said in an interview. “We respect the fact that employees can make their own decisions and have the right to do so.”
Companies like Amazon and Starbucks frequently held compulsory meetings with employees to claim that unions could make them worse in the face of their own union campaigns.
The Labor Relations Commission has complained to Amazon, including charges that workers are threatening to lose profits if they form a union, and Starbucks has fired workers who tried to form a union. He accused the workers of effectively promising profits if they did not choose. Unite. Both companies denied the accusation.In a recent case filed by NLRB in Arizona, a federal judge Rejected A request for an injunction to reinstate union-supporting workers, said the Labor Relations Commission said Starbucks had illegally deported.
The agreement between Microsoft and the union also protects workers’ right to communicate with each other and with union officers about union campaigns, and many employers are trying to discourage them, between the company and the union. The discrepancy is a “quick arbitration process.” NLRB complaints can take months or years to resolve.
When Microsoft and Activision announced a blockbuster deal in January, game makers were under stress as senior executives faced criticism for ignoring sexual harassment and discrimination. These concerns have spurred organization among Activision employees, including workers at Raven Software Studios in Wisconsin, which develops games in popular franchises like Call of Duty.
After announcing that about 30 quality assurance (QA) groups were trying to unite workers, Activision sought to convince the Federal Labor Relations Commission that elections should not proceed. Game workers have blamed Activision for union-busting tactics, such as raising wages for non-Raven QA workers and splitting QA workers. Embed them throughout Raven Studios..
Activision argued that a broader shift in approach was already underway, although some changes had occurred in this trend after the union campaign was announced. For example, there is a move to change the status of hundreds of temporary and dispatched workers to full-time full-time employees. in autumn..
In early March, the union signed a letter asking federal regulators to scrutinize the takeover. “The potential acquisition by Microsoft could further weaken workers’ rights and curb wages,” the letter said. Said..
Since then, Microsoft has tried to come up with a tone of reconciliation.this Said It does not prevent Activision from voluntarily approving the union before a formal election that Activision did not hold. After Raven’s QA workers resolved in late May to form the first union at a major North American game publisher, Microsoft game director Phil Spencer said Raven’s union once the deal between the two companies was closed. I told the employee to admit. Game news site Kotaku reportQuotes a video of the employee’s city hall.
Activision Said On Friday, it began negotiating a contract with a newly unionized Raven worker. In a statement, the company’s CEO, Bobby Kotick, said, “We will take this important step with 27 representatives and CWA to better serve our employees, players and other stakeholders. I decided to explore ideas and insights for. “
and Blog post This month, which seems to be a precursor to the deal, Smith announced a set of principles to guide Microsoft’s response to trade unions. This shows that Microsoft is taking a more open approach to the company’s entire business.
he I have written While working in Europe, he observed Microsoft’s successful “collaboration between labor-management councils and trade unions” and in the United States “making it easier, not harder for employees to get information.” We will pursue a collaborative approach. ” Make decisions and exercise your legal right to choose whether to form or join a union. “
In an interview, Smith called the Neutrality Agreement “the first opportunity to put these principles into practice.”
The Communications Workers of America, which represents employees of companies such as AT & T Mobility and Verizon, have been trying to organize workers in the technology industry in recent years. He started organizing retail workers at the Apple Store and helped Google workers form so-called minority unions. This allows us to work together on workplace issues without winning union elections.
Approximately 12 retail employees at the Google Fiber Store in Kansas City, Missouri, have been officially hired by Google’s contractors and recently voted to join the union.
Keren Browning Report that contributed.