Employees of Bethesda and parent ZeniMax, who are now owned by Microsoft announced a strike. Employees are dissatisfied with the company’s remote work policy.
The strike has been announced across the country. Employees in Maryland and Texas are quitting, claiming that the company failed to resolve the remote work situation at the bargaining table and eventually outsourced some quality control work without union consent.
Bethesda and ZeniMax have the most powerful union in the US in the game development industry, with more than 300 members. The union is giving few details: it says that Microsoft has made progress in negotiations, but the one-day strike was a necessary step because requests to the company have gone unanswered. In October, the union filed a complaint against ZeniMax.
«We respect the rights of our employees to speak out, as they did today. We will continue to listen and address their concerns at the negotiating table,» a Microsoft spokesperson said.
The day before the strike, Rianna Eichner, Head of Quality Testing, said she was excited and looking forward to a «fun event»:
«I know it sounds strange, but we all look forward to getting together and spending time together. Everyone understands that this is what needs to happen. It’s what we need to do to move forward. We are all ready for it».
The union seeks to limit the percentage of outsourced testers in relation to permanent employees. it is not disclosed to whom the company outsources the work. The union also seeks more flexible remote work policy. Currently, ZeniMax employees are forced to go to the office twice a week, and many are denied requests to work remotely. Eichner notes that the company has repeatedly ignored the union’s proposal to work remotely.
«They kept giving us the same offer, over and over again, and it became obvious that our other tactics hadn’t worked».
Several testers will be forced to relocate or find a new job if they have to come into the office all five days a week. They have been hired recently to work remotely under various circumstances and find it extremely difficult to change their schedule.
Source: Inverse
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