While the worst of the pandemic is clearly over, a few years of getting people to work from home has shown that many people are happier and even work better when they can do it where they live. So make decisions Violence Employees returning to the office will understandably face resistance from across the workforce, and video games are no exception.
Activision Blizzard has confirmed with game developer that her own to planfirst made public in this Twitter thread by @LeastMyHairIsOksee Activision publishing staff asked to come back to the office on April 10, while Blizzard employees would do so on July 10 (King employees, meanwhile, went back in July 2022).
It should be noted that neither Activision nor Blizzard employees will be forced back into the office full-time since “eThe employees of both areas have to come to the office three days a week”.
However, this is still a major concern for both current and potential employees as not only are people still catching and dying from Covidbut three years of remote work has shown many skilled workers in the gaming industry that they can do their jobs well without the health risks, commuting, and other frictions that come with having to travel to a specific location to get all of their work done. and all while dodging a global pandemic and battling a cost-of-living crisis.
LeastMyHairIsOk – a Blizzard customer service representative—spells it all out in hers Twitter threadpointing out other problems that have arisen as a result of or at least at the same time, the pandemic. I collected hers Tweet here:
The majority of employees at ABK have no interest in returning to office, either full-time or part-time. That’s not to say that nobody sees the value in an office environment, but overall we’ve decided that the risks don’t outweigh it these benefits.
Get rid of the giant elephants in the room – COVID continues to be a threat to life and abilities despite government guidelines. It is a widespread, disabling disease and many of our employees or their families are at high risk of complications from contracting it.
In addition, the WFH regulations have resulted in employees having more time since they do not lose it by commuting. Lower fuel/insurance costs plus the ability to live farther from the expensive cities we work in equates to a more effective net reward.
This is vital as we are currently going through an inflationary crisis which ABK could not help with. The cost of living has skyrocketed across the country, and employees are feeling the strain as several departments take annual effective pay cuts despite “raises.”
To escape the pressure of rising CoL and stay safe, staff have made cuts. They have moved farther from our offices in expensive cities, sold or avoided buying vehicles, and changed the way their households handle things like childcare and schooling.
For over a decade, lower-income departments have asked leadership to include annual CoL adjustments in pay to prevent this, but have been denied and our most recent meetings last month suggest there are no plans to do so this year to change year.
Two to four months is not enough time for the company to change this attitude, even if they are willing to do so. Even if that is the case, there is not enough time for those who made the difficult decision to move to uproot and return.
The leadership is unprepared for what is likely to happen – an exodus of talent if we find work elsewhere. Other tech jobs pay better and offer WFH, and it’s clear our thoughts on the subject are irrelevant. What incentive do our employees have to stay at ABK?
This means the rest of us have to work harder, which lowers morale. That means we have to re-hire or outsource, which also means product delays and less polished products to be released this year. All of these factors will result in even lower wages for employees next year.
This RTO plan doesn’t even affect my department, Customer Service, which has been granted full WFH with no involuntary RTO plans. However, I feel obliged to stand up for my colleagues in solidarity. We see each other and support you.
Our staff have consistently done an excellent job despite the downsides of WFH since the onset of COVID. Putting them back in power to risk sickness and death on the flimsy justification of “better cooperation” is unscrupulous.
ABK leadership is either maliciously aware of all of these factors or actively incompetent. We’ve had record profits for consecutive years while cost-cutting measures like layoffs have been justified time and time again. WFH was the silver lining that has kept many of us here.
It’s clear what this RTO policy really is – an ultimatum. “Bend to our idea of correct working conditions or don’t.” We were flexible long enough for the ABK leadership. It’s your turn to bow down before breaking this enterprise beyond repair.
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They’re all solid points, and won’t just be something Activision Blizzard has to reckon with in the coming months. Any company that tries to do this will face resistance, That’s why smarter companies like Bungie are already adjusting their hiring policies a distant workforce.
