US EditionRenton Workers Behind Popular Video Game Seek to Unionize
Workers say a supermajority has signed union cards and will withdraw an election petition if Hasbro recognizes the unit by May 1.
- Developers of Magic Arena announced Monday they are unionizing with the Communications Workers of America , asking parent company Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast for voluntary recognition.
- Following mass layoffs at Hasbro, including roughly 1,100 jobs cut in December 2023, organizing efforts accelerated amid confusing return-to-office mandates and inconsistent leadership messaging.
- Encompassing around 100 developers, the unit seeks protections for layoffs, remote work, and generative AI use, citing that management prioritizes "short-term, profit-driven decisions."
- Workers filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board and will withdraw it if Hasbro and WOTC grant voluntary recognition by May 1, International Workers Day.
- Senior software development engineer Damien Wilson said the union aims to protect the craft as employees seek a voice in product decisions to ensure long-term sustainability.
16 Articles
16 Articles
Game devs unionize to improve working conditions on ‘Magic: The Gathering – Arena’ team
Developers working on Magic: The Gathering – Arena at Renton, Wash.-based Wizards of the Coast have formed a union with the Communications Workers of America, seeking protections on remote work, layoffs, AI use, and overtime.
Slog AM: Philippine Military Kills Seattleite, Magic: The Gathering Workers Unionize, Boeing Loses Big Fish
Magic: The Gathering Arena Devs Unionize: Workers at local tabletop gaming titan Wizards of the Coast unionized yesterday, specifically the devs behind Arena, the accessible online version of the card game. Their concerns should sound familiar: the layoffs keep coming, management wants all the remote workers to move to Washington and head into the office, uh-oh AI, and mandatory crunch time to match the accelerated tempo of MTG set releases. Mor…
Magic: The Gathering Arena developers are officially trying to unionize
The developers behind Magic: The GatheringArena are officially seeking to unionize. This marks the first known labor organizing effort within Wizards of the Coast, the publisher behind Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons, which is a subsidiary of Hasbro.
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