Majority of Overwatch Developers at Activision Blizzard Choose to Form a Union

More than 200 Activision Blizzard developers working on Overwatch 2 have chosen to form a union. The Communications Workers of America (CWA) announced the formation of its newest guild, known as The Overwatch Gamemakers Guild-CWA (OWGG-CWA), which comprises game developers from various disciplines, including design, production, engineering, art, sound, and quality assurance. This decision was made by an overwhelming majority of the workforce. CWA Local 9510 President Jason Justice expressed excitement about the development, stating that California remains a key location for video game industry organizing and welcoming the Overwatch game developers to CWA. The move to unionize was motivated in part by the desire to create a healthier work environment, particularly in the face of significant layoffs in the industry. This latest unionization effort follows a similar move by Activision's user research workers in March, with Microsoft recognizing the OWGG-CWA and over 2,600 workers at Microsoft-owned studios now organized under the company's neutrality agreement with CWA.