Raven Software QA Forms 34 Person Union, Demands Recognition

Quality Assurance workers within Raven Software, an Activision Blizzard studio most known for testing Call of Duty: Warzone, have unionized. The 34 worker team has taken the name Game Workers Alliance Union, and have asked Activision to publicly acknowledge their union status. The union itself is part of the Communications Workers of America, the largest union in the American media industry.

The call for unionization has spread among the videogame industry as of late, and indie developer Vodeo Games shattered the glass ceiling when they became the first unionized studio in North America back in December.

Even before unionizing, the workers of Raven Software made news by striking last month after Activision Blizzard laid off 12 contractors. Without the QA, players of Warzone have become vocal about the ever increasing amount of bugs they encounter within the game.

Activision Blizzard has not yet officially recognized the union, but have stated “While we believe that a direct relationship between the company and its team members delivers the strongest workforce opportunities, we deeply respect the rights of all employees under the law to make their own decisions about whether or not to join a union.”

Should Raven Software be officially accepted, they would be given, as QA lead Brent Reel told Bloomberg, “a real seat at the table to positively shape the company going forward.” The fate of the studio ultimately lays in the hands of Activision Blizzard, or Microsoft if the $69 billion merger does not stop any further unionization efforts in its tracks.