ACTIVISION Blizzard is a widely popular US video game company. Former and current employees signed a petition to combat Activision Blizzard’s “abhorrent and insulting” response to a gender discrimination and sexual harassment lawsuit brought against the company. What is the Activision Blizzard lawsuit about? Over 2,000 current and former employees at Activision Blizzard have signed […]
ACTIVISION Blizzard is a widely popular US video game company.
Former and current employees signed a petition to combat Activision Blizzard’s “abhorrent and insulting” response to a gender discrimination and sexual harassment lawsuit brought against the company.
Over 2,000 current and former employees at Activision Blizzard have signed a petition against the video game company’s “abhorrent and insulting” response to a California lawsuit.
Seen on Monday, July 26, 2021, by CNN Business, the petition was then circulated and the company was slammed for comments they made in response to a lawsuit filed.
Following the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing lawsuit, claiming multiple female employees were against gender discrimination and sexual harassment, Activision Blizzard said in a statement to CNN that the filing and investigation was “inaccurate” and “distorted.”
The petition stated that Activision Blizzard’s response to the lawsuit was, “abhorrent and insulting to all that we believe our company should stand for.”
“To put it clearly and unequivocally, our values as employees are not accurately reflected in the words and actions of our leadership.”
Frances Townsend, a former George W. Bush administration member and Activision Blizzard corporate affairs representative, described the lawsuit’s claims as “factually incorrect, old and out of context,” reportedly.
The petition is urging for “official statements that recognize the seriousness of these allegations and demonstrate compassion for victims of harassment and assault,” and for Townsend to leave her position at the company.
“We call on the executive leadership team to work with us on new and meaningful efforts that ensure employees — as well as our community — have a safe place to speak out and come forward,” it added.
Activision Blizzard, Inc. is an American video game holding company in Santa Monica, California, that was founded on July 10, 2008.
The company was the product of a merger between Activision Inc. and Vivendi Games and has five business units to date: Activision Publishing, Blizzard Entertainment, King, Major League Gaming, and Activision Blizzard Studios.
As of March 2018, Activision Blizzard hit new records as the largest game company in the Americas and Europe for its market capitalization and revenue.
Activision Blizzard employees are planning a strike on Wednesday, July 28, 2021, to protest the company’s remarks about the discrimination lawsuit and to demand more staff equality, according to Bloomberg.
Since the lawsuit, former employees of Activision Blizzard, have voiced their experiences on social media claiming it’s a “frat boy” work environment and a workspace where women have to “continually fend off unwanted sexual comments and advances by their male coworkers.”
There were also complaints that the “the company’s executives and human resources personnel knew of the harassment and failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the unlawful conduct, and instead retaliated against women who complained.”
