The quality assurance (QA) testers at Raven Software have signed their first union contract with Microsoft. This is a big win for workers’ rights in the video game industry.
The workers, who are part of the Game Workers Alliance-CWA (GWA-CWA), voted to form a union three years ago, and now they have reached this historic agreement.
The contract sets a new standard for benefits and protections for workers in a field that is often criticized for having a tough work environment.
The path that led to this agreement was long and often contentious. A group of QA testers at the “Call of Duty” studio went on strike in late 2021 to protest being laid off.
They finally reached their goal in May 2022, when the first union at a major American game company, Activision Blizzard, was formed. This was a turning point because it happened soon after Microsoft said it would buy Activision Blizzard.
Microsoft said in public that it would not support or oppose efforts to form a union, but the negotiations that followed were hard and took three years, with many rounds of bargaining.
The recently approved contract has several important parts that address the main concerns of the QA workers at Raven Software. The most important of these is a guaranteed 10% pay raise over two years, with more raises possible based on performance and promotions.
The contract also addresses the long-standing problem of “crunch time,” a time when workers are often forced to work extra hours. It says that excessive overtime has to stop, that any required extra hours have to be announced seven days in advance, and that excessive overtime can’t happen in back-to-back weeks.
The agreement also makes it easier to move up in your career by giving clear job descriptions and a fair way to get promoted. Lastly, it includes important protections for people who are laid off, like severance pay, the right to be recalled, large COBRA subsidies, and services to help people find new jobs.
A QA tester and member of the bargaining committee at Raven Software named Erin Hall said the accomplishment was “incredible.” She stressed that the contract meets the workers’ needs for “better pay, real career paths, and protection from burnout.”
Autumn Prazuch, another member of the committee, agreed with this and said that the contract is a “win for game workers everywhere who are ready to take the first step toward a better future.”
This deal sets a strong standard for the video game business as well as for Microsoft’s other businesses. This is the second union contract that Microsoft has approved. ZeniMax QA workers struck a similar deal in June.
As a result of their success, the Raven Software union shows that organizing workers is becoming more popular in the tech and gaming industries. It also shows that persistent group action can actually improve working conditions, even at one of the biggest companies in the world.
