From layoffs and return-to-office mandates to challenges around AI and creativity, it’s not all fun and games for video game workers. And now, some are seeking to unionize.
On April 27, a group of game developers behind the digital collectible card game Magic: The Gathering Arena announced the intent to form a union in affiliation with the Communications Workers of America (CWA). The group is a part of the gaming studio Wizards of the Coast (WOTC), a division of Hasbro.
The group, which is coming together as United Wizards of the Coast – CWA, said it reached a supermajority of eligible Arena workers in support for unionization a week before the announcement. The group has since notified leadership at Wizards of the Coast, calling on the company to recognize the union voluntarily.
“At Wizards, we’re organizing for a say in layoffs, accountability that runs up and down the chain, and a living wage that actually lets people build a life. I’m hopeful about what we can build here and being clear-eyed about why it’s necessary,” UWOTC-CWA member Damien Wilson, a Senior Software Development Engineer for Magic: The Gathering Arena, said in a statement.
The bargaining unit is set to represent more than 100 employees at the studio, including game designers, programmers, producers, and artists.
In case the union is not recognized voluntarily by WOTC, the group has also filed an election petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The bargaining unit’s letter says the group will withdraw the petition if leadership recognizes the union before the end of the business day on May 1.
“We would greatly prefer to allow the company to willingly engage with us as we proceed however we are filing for an election petition as well to ensure a timely resolution for certifying our union,” the letter says. “Should you agree to voluntary recognition in principle, we are happy to coordinate a third-party card check verification of our super majority support in order to finalize a voluntary recognition agreement.”
The group cites generative AI protections, layoff protections, remote work protections among the key issues the bargaining unit seeks to address.
The demands reflect some of the challenges employees have faced in the last few years. Just last year, the studio laid off about 30 employees, in addition to a 1,000 workers laid off from Hasbro in 2023. And as the company pushed for return-to-office mandates, many remote workers were being forced to relocate to Renton, Washington or fear dismissal.
The bargaining unit would join broader efforts in the gaming industry to improve workers’ conditions. Last year, the United Videogame Workers-CWA launched as a direct-join, industry-wide video game union and represents over 600 members in the US and Canada.
In the letter the group added, “we are building the game industry we want to see in the world.”