Earlier today, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick wrote to all employees about the company’s progress in improving workplace conditions following overwhelming evidence of sexual harassment, misconduct and gender discrimination. In this letter, Bobby stated that he has asked the board of directors to reduce their salary.
The statement regarding his salary reduction is as follows: “Therefore, I have asked our board of directors to reduce my total compensation until the board of directors determines that we have achieved the aforementioned gender-related transformation goals and other commitments. Specifically, I have asked the board to My salary has been reduced to the minimum wage allowed by California law, which is $62,500 this year.”
In addition, he also reiterated that the salary cut is “to reduce my overall salary, not just my salary”, and asked not to receive any bonuses during the salary reduction period. As early as April, Bobby Kotick cut his salary by 50% following shareholder feedback on “Incorporating Market Best Practices.”
After Bobby Kotick made several promises about how Activision Blizzard will change, he announced his salary reduction request in a letter and said, “If we are to become a company that others will follow, We still have a lot of work to do.”
The changes mentioned include the introduction of a new company-wide zero tolerance harassment policy that will increase the proportion of women and non-binary people in the workplace by 50% (committed to invest $250 million to accelerate opportunities for diverse talent ).
Bobby also stated that they will abandon the necessary arbitration for sexual harassment and discrimination claims, continue to increase the visibility of pay fairness, and provide regular progress updates.
These changes come from Bobby’s additional appendix, in which he said: “I want to share the five new changes we are implementing, but realize that becoming a model of a great workplace will be a dynamic process that requires additional changes and relentless improvement. promise”.
According to the aforementioned statement, it is not clear how long this potential pay cut will last, “until the board of directors determines that we have achieved the aforementioned gender-related transformation goals and other commitments.” Although this does mean this pay cut It will continue until Activision Blizzard undergoes drastic changes, but this is only Bobby’s request. The board can increase his salary at any time, despite Bobby’s wishes. Time will tell whether Bobby Kotic’s salary is reduced, as long as this sentence implies, it will continue.
The letter was issued after a long and chaotic legal battle between Activision Blizzard and multiple regulatory agencies. The latest update is that the judge dismissed an attorney representing Activision Blizzard’s attempt to suspend housing and fair employment by the California Department of Fair Employment.
