Over the past ten years, the emergence of labour unions within the video‑game sector has moved from a niche curiosity to a central conversation. As developers, artists, writers and support staff confront demanding schedules, precarious contracts and management oversights, an increasing number of workers are turning to collective bargaining to safeguard their rights.
In a relatively short span, several game‑specific unions have been established, and they have already shown tangible benefits for their members. For instance, SAG‑AFTRA organised a strike that secured higher wages and explicit protections against the misuse of artificial intelligence for voice‑over work. Employees at ZeniMax staged walk‑outs over disputes concerning remote‑work policies and the outsourcing of tasks, while coordinated protests have taken place outside the headquarters of major publishers such as Rockstar Games, Activision, Ubisoft, Bethesda, Riot Games and Build A Rocket Boy. These actions illustrate a broader shift: engaging with unions is becoming a routine part of studio life, a theme that will be explored in depth at the upcoming HR Summit on October 1.
"When Game Workers Unite first launched eight years ago, unions were virtually absent from the industry," explains Austin Kelmore, co‑founder of the IWGB Game Workers and Game Worker Solidarity. "Today, more than 130 distinct groups across fifteen countries have organised and won concrete improvements. The debate has moved from ‘Should the games industry unionise?’ to ‘Which group of workers will unionise next?’" Kelmore adds that the movement has already achieved remarkable victories, but acknowledges that full union coverage remains a work in progress. "We are making our voices heard and winning big in the process.
We still have a long way to go to fully unionise the games industry, but we've made an incredible amount of progress in a relatively small amount of time." In France, the experience at Ubisoft illustrates how quickly union presence can evolve. Marc Rutschlé, a representative of Solidaires Informatique at Ubisoft Paris, notes that five years ago the company’s Comité Social et Economique (CSE) had no union representation. "Now unions are present in almost every French Ubisoft studio, and some locations host several unions simultaneously.
This is typical for a French corporation and signals a maturing social dialogue within the firm." Rutschlé also warns that the broader French gaming landscape is under strain: "Most major studios are either filing for bankruptcy or announcing layoffs. The next one or two years will be decisive for the sector." Poland offers another perspective.
The Polish Gamedev Workers Union, created just two years ago under the umbrella of the nationwide Workers Initiative, now counts ten studios among its official members, while many more developers from smaller firms participate informally. Union member Artur Ganszyniec highlights the legal obstacles: "Polish trade‑union law dates back to the 1980s and was designed for heavy industry, not for creative or remote work.
The statutes favour employers, severely limiting what unions can achieve." Despite those constraints, the Polish union has already assisted workers facing layoffs, provided legal counsel, helped navigate the complexities of Polish labour legislation, negotiated workplace standards and built an informal support network for its members. Kelmore summarises a range of recent gains achieved by game‑industry unions worldwide: four‑day workweeks, salary raises, hybrid and fully remote arrangements, explicit AI safeguards, performance bonuses, six‑hour workdays and more. Unions have also curbed mass layoffs, tackled harassment, and secured multi‑million‑dollar settlements for mistreated staff. "My own boss tried to discipline me, and I was able to get the sanction dismissed," Kelmore recalls.
"Together with colleagues we negotiated better redundancy terms for those who were let go and for those who stayed." Beyond material benefits, union members report a profound shift in mindset. "When people experience the power of collective action, they never forget it. That confidence fuels further change both inside and outside the workplace," Kelmore says. Unions are also reshaping employer behaviour.
Early casework often involved educating company leaders about legal obligations. "We taught managers how to follow proper disciplinary, grievance and redundancy procedures, how to accommodate disabilities and neuro‑diverse staff, and how to respect the law that workers actually know better than they do," Kelmore explains.
As unions grow, they can apply pressure at the highest levels. A recent example is Microsoft’s agreement with the Communication Workers of America for 1,900 Blizzard employees, delivering hybrid‑work options, AI protections, recall rights, above‑industry severance and up to 34 % wage increases. Rutschlé points to AI protections as a critical battleground, describing AI as "the biggest enemy of video games right now" because of both creative concerns and the massive investment influx that threatens studio stability. He adds, "When HR tells you everything is fine, that’s often outright falsehood.
Unions become the trusted voice when problems arise." Looking forward, challenges remain. In Poland, the rise of civil‑contract arrangements—where developers operate as one‑person companies—allows higher pay but strips away basic employee protections such as sick leave and notice periods.
Ganszyniec warns that these contracts hover on illegality and are difficult to contest in court, so the union focuses on education for both workers and studios. Historical scepticism toward unions in Poland, coupled with costly legal attacks from anti‑union companies, hampers recruitment. Rutschlé notes that many game workers still fear retaliation, while Kelmore observes persistent misconceptions that organising is either inherently good or bad, when in reality it is simply a tool.
"Unions are messy organisations made up of complex people. They make mistakes, have conflicts and evolve. I support them not because they are perfect, but because they amplify the voice of everyday workers," Kelmore says.
"The legal and economic frameworks in any industry, including gamedev, heavily favour companies. Employees need to organise to create a counterbalance." Ganszyniec stresses the need to protect the tacit knowledge held by seasoned developers. He calls for better working conditions, fair salaries, strategies to manage layoffs, platforms for knowledge sharing and support networks that keep experienced talent in the field and pass expertise to junior staff.
Cross‑border collaboration amplifies these efforts. Kelmore recounts taking training from unions outside his own jurisdiction, sharing detailed documents, and participating in global conferences where unions exchange tactics. He cites protests organised by workers in the US, Canada and France outside Take‑Two’s headquarters in solidarity with UK colleagues. "What we do for each other builds collective strength," he asserts.
Rutschlé concludes that healthier, better‑compensated work environments—whether achieved by a single union or through coordinated action—benefit the entire industry. "Reduced turnover, a more diverse workforce beyond the stereotypical young white male engineer, and retained expertise all lead to higher‑quality games," he says. The GamesIndustry.biz HR Summit, returning to London on October 1 with a focus on People & Leadership, will feature two dedicated sessions offering guidance and best practices for HR and people professionals on how to engage constructively with trade unions. Tickets are available through the event’s website.