The Communications Workers of America (CWA) issued a statement Thursday related to filing an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on behalf of GWA-CWA members at Raven Software, the Wisconsin-based studio division of Activision Blizzard—owned by Microsoft.
In its statement, the CWA alleges that management at the company took a disciplinary action against union members that was illegal and a violation of national labor laws.
“Earlier this week, upper management at Activision illegally disciplined a member of GWA-CWA’s bargaining committee, nearly five months after the member communicated with their manager about bargaining,” the statement read. “During the lengthy investigation of this communication, Activision instructed the GWA-CWA member not to discuss the investigation or its outcome with anyone, presumably including her co-workers and the union.
“This discipline and the prohibition on discussing the disciplinary investigation are clear violations of the National Labor Relations Act, which protects workers’ right to join together to improve their working conditions. Activision’s capricious and retaliatory enforcement of policies, including vaguely instructing workers to not discuss discipline or investigations, has a chilling effect and creates the impression of unlawful surveillance in the workplace.
“Today, we have filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board to demand that Activision swiftly end its interference with workers’ rights and comply with the National Labor Relations Act.”
The Esports Advocate reached out to the CWA and Raven Software Co-Founder and President Brian Raffel prior to the publication of this story. A CWA spokesperson offered the following statement to TEA after publication:
“We believe that the facts clearly show a violation of the National Labor Relations Act, and believe that the NLRB should conduct a full investigation and hold Activision accountable. While we are concerned about changes that the Trump Administration is pursuing at the NLRB, we will continue to use every tool available to us to ensure that workers have the freedom to join together to improve their working conditions.”
While CWA may have filed a formal complaint with the NLRB, it may not be well received, given the current political climate at the agency in charge of dealing with national labor disputes. On Feb. 3, President Donald Trump appointed William B. Cowen to the role of Acting General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board, a promotion from his role as regional director at the Los Angeles Regional Office—a role he had served in since 2016. On Feb. 14, Cowen began rescinding around 18 memoranda issued by his predecessor Jennifer Abruzzo, according to data collected by law firm Ogletree Deakins.
This is not the first time that Raven Software leadership has been accused of meddling with the union at its studio; In late August 2024, unionized workers at the company filed a complaint with the NLRB against parent companies Activision Blizzard and Microsoft alleging that they were acting in bad faith bargaining related to a collective bargaining agreement and concerted activities to engage in retaliatory practices such as disciplining and discharging striking employees. According to an Inside Gaming report, that complaint alleged:
“In the six months prior to the filing of this charge, and on an ongoing and continuous basic, the Employer [Activision] discriminated against bargaining unit employees on the basis of their union membership concerning several terms and conditions of employment (e.g., pay treatment, hiring, work assignment and tasking, promotions, permanent work-from-home).
“The Employer also engaged in surface bargaining, failed to engage in good faith on any economic proposals and on other mandatory subjects of bargaining (e.g., discrimination and harassment at work), and failed to meet at reasonable times and places for bargaining.”
Raven Software is one of several internal development studios that work on the Call of Duty franchise. Founded in 1990 by brothers Brian and Steve Raffel, the company is best known for creating the Doom engine-based, fantasy-based shooter series Hexen. Over the years, it has developed such games as Star Wars Jedi Knight II, Jedi Outcast, and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, among others.
Editor’s note: A statement from the CWA was added to this story after it was published.