Employees at Raven Software, known for its work on the Call of Duty series, have finally secured their first union contract with Microsoft. This milestone comes nearly three years after quality assurance (QA) workers at the company voted to unionize.
The workers, organized under the Game Workers Alliance-CWA (GWA-CWA), unanimously ratified the contract, which includes a guaranteed 10-percent wage increase over two years, alongside additional raises based on merit and promotions.
The contract also addresses longstanding industry issues by eliminating crunch time. It requires a seven-day notice for any mandatory overtime, bans excessive overtime on consecutive weeks, and prevents mandatory overtime for the majority of week in a quarter.
Other key provisions include defined job descriptions, a fair promotions process, expanded disability accommodations, and protections against layoffs such as severance pay, recall rights, COBRA subsidies, and career transition services.
The unionization efforts began in early 2022, shortly before Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which owns Raven Software. The past three years saw challenges, including allegations of withheld raises and bad faith bargaining by Activision. This contract follows similar agreements secured by workers at other Microsoft-owned studios like ZeniMax.
Raven Software’s QA testers described the contract as a significant victory that values their work, provides better pay, clearer career paths, and safeguards against burnout. The success offers hope and inspiration for game workers pursuing unionization and better workplace standards across the industry.
Source: Engadget covers Raven Software securing its union contract with Microsoft, three years after voting to organize.
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