Activision Blizzard’s president of corporate affairs Frances Townsend (Frances Townsend) no longer serves as the executive sponsor of the company’s ABK Women’s Network.
The news of Townsend’s resignation came after criticism from a combative company email and her reposting an article calling for whistleblowers.
According to an article published by the Washington Post, Townsend said that by resigning as a sponsor, she is doing something “right to the Internet”. Townsend also stated that she will “continue to do everything she can to support and advance the work of the network” (thanks to IGN).
Townsend was recently criticized by current and former employees for leaking emails. She said that California’s lawsuit against Activision Blizzard presented a “distorted and untrue picture” of the company. She went on to say that these allegations were “actually incorrect”, outdated, and told “out-of-context stories.” The email also called the lawsuit “baseless and irresponsible.”
According to two employees of The Washington Post, Townsend held a Zoom conference call with employees on July 23, and she defended her email. According to her, the e-mail was drafted after following the language guidance of the legal counsel, “The final result no longer sounds like hers.” After the conference call, Towsned decided to quit the women’s network.
When Townsend forwarded an article entitled “Reported Issues,” she was criticized again. Because a large number of current and former employees share their stories with reporters online, many Blizzard employees think this is out of date. Due to criticism, Townsend began to block members of the media and Blizzard employees, and then eventually disabled her account-this is her voluntary.
On July 20, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing filed a lawsuit against Activision Blizzard after a two-year investigation into allegations of discrimination, sexual harassment, and the prevailing “fraternity culture.”
In response to Activision Blizzard’s statement that the lawsuit was “unfounded,” and Townsend’s preliminary statement, employees went on strike in solidarity with current and former employees for sharing stories, supporting the lawsuit, and protesting current leadership.
The staff also signed an open letter requesting that the responsible persons be held accountable. The company’s chief executive Bobby Kotic issued a statement afterwards, acknowledging that the company’s initial response to the allegations in the lawsuit was “deaf.” However, employees believed that his statement did not fully address their concerns.
Also worrying to employees is that Kotick hired law firm WilmerHale to review the company’s policies and procedures. The problem Blizzard employees have for the company is that it is known for breaking the union and pacifying collective bargaining among workers.
After all this, Blizzard President J. Allen Brack and Human Resources Director Jesse Meschuk have left. Shareholders have filed a class action lawsuit against the company to conceal California’s investigation of the company. The Overwatch League sponsored Coca-Cola, and Kellogg and State Farm are both in Re-evaluate their sponsorship.
Considering that the lawsuit was only recently filed, Activision Blizzard may take some time to appear in court.
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