The company say they’d rather use resources to directly respond to concerns
Shareholders inActivision Blizzardhave been advised by the company not to approve a proposal from New York state to investigate and report on how allegations of sexual harrassment and misconduct within the company are being addressed. The recommendation by Activision Blizzard’s board of directors was made unanimously ahead of their annual meeting on June 21st, picked up on byAxios.
The board state that they “do not believe this proposal is in the best interests of the company or its shareholders“. Instead of creating such a report, they say it would be better to “directly respond to employee concerns”. A vote on the proposal would take place at the company’s annual meeting.
What does the proposed report want to find out about how Activision Blizzard treat their workers? Well, the proposal seeks to include how many allegations of sexual abuse, harassment and discrimination Activision Blizzard is looking into, how much money the company have spent settling claims during the past three years, and how many more misconduct claims they’ve yet to address.
The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing’s two-year-longinvestigation of Activision Blizzardreportedly found that 2,500 people could be owed up to $930 million (£744 million) in compensation, but the company’s board have said this estimate “appears to be based on faulty assumptions, inaccurate guesses about factual matters, and multiple mathematical errors”.
Activision Blizzard have struggled over the past few years withreports of misconduct, sexual harrassment allegations andinadequate working conditions. Staff at Call Of Duty developer Raven Softwarestaged walkoutsin December, but have been given the opportunity tovote on unionisingin the past few weeks after they wereexcluded from pay increasesand benefit improvements given to other Activision Blizzard employees at the beginning of April. CEO Bobby Kotick remains in place despiteseveral walkoutsby Activision Blizzard staff calling for his resignation.
Last week, Activision Blizzard shareholdersvoted in an overwhelming majorityto approve Microsoft Corporation’s $68.7 billion (£50 billion)purchase of the company. The buyout still needs to be checked and approved by the United StatesFederal Trade Commission, whose lead Lina Khan may strongly oppose the deal. Other global players like the European Union and China will also need to decide on it.
