Activists are trying to get a seat on the company board to represent the voice of the staff as they face a number of sexual harassment lawsuits. The first union election at a major U.S. gaming company was quashed by shareholders despite major victories. Only 5% of shareholders voted in favor of giving board seats to employees.
There was worse news for activist employees. A minority group of shareholders demanded that board directors Brian Kelly and Robert Morgado retire by the end of the year, after a Wall Street Journal report found that top executives at the company did not inform the board about a rape allegation. They have been re-elected to the board along with Bobby Kotick.
The shareholders approved a proposal from the New York State Comptroller that will require the gaming giant to share information about employee compensation, the number of sexual harassment settlements, pending complaints and progress on improving company culture.
The proposal may force the company to be more accountable. The company board investigated itself and found that it did nothing wrong and that there were some instances of gender harassment. Toxic behavior, attempted union-breaking and employee unrest are all reported.
More tech workers reaching historic firsts in union organizing, like the unionizing of an Apple Store this week, may lead to more movement within the company. The Communication Workers of America helped Raven Software workers unionize after Microsoft entered a labor neutral agreement. Microsoft won't try to prevent employees from unionizing.
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