Tech

Activision Blizzard workers demand the resignation of their CEO

Activision Blizzard’s situation is far from good. Quite the contrary, the company is probably, reputationally speaking, at the worst moment in its history. And, at least in my opinion, it is something more than deserved. As we already told you a few months ago, the company directors would have allowed a very toxic work culture, which would have resulted in constant harassment of many workers, colleagues who did not agree with said attitudes, and so on.

All this as a result of these revelations, and the lawsuit imposed on Activision Blizzard by the state of California, after an exhaustive investigation that would have revealed both that all kinds of outrages really did take place, and that the managers looked the other way, and that even the human resources department tried to mitigate the intentions of some employees. A situation that peaked, unfortunately, with the suicide of an employee who had previously suffered harassment.

Shortly after the scandal was revealed, J. Allen Brack, the then president of Activision Blizzard, left, who was replaced by Jen Oneal and Mike Ybarra, who assumed the position of “co-leaders.” The problem? Well, the person who many blame for what happened in the company during all these years, Bobby Kotick, still the CEO of it. And that despite the complaint filed by the shareholders, which specifically points to Kotick, among other executives, for the events denounced by the state of California.

Over the past few days, new revelations that suggest that the role of the still CEO of Activision Blizzard would have had even more relevance in the events that have caused this scandal. And is that The Wall Street Journal has published a report on his management, and that in summary affirms that Kotick not only knew of many of the worst cases of abuse in the company, but that, in some cases, he could also have acted to protect employees accused of harassment.

This has set the limit for many Activision Blizzard employees, who united in the ABetterABK 💙 ABK Workers Alliance initiative, they have decided to go on strike and establish what they qualify as their own zero tolerance policy. And what do they claim to end the strike? Well, the departure of Bobby Kotick from the company, as well as the third-party review of the processes by a source chosen by the employees.

Will Kotick resign from his position at Activision Blizzard? Let’s be frank, it does not seem very likely, although the pressure that the strike can impose, especially if it is seconded in a massive way and lasts over time, yes, there is a possibility that investors will end up demanding their head and, in the same batch, that the changes announced by the company really materialize in concrete measures and in a change in its work culture.

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