Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble devs vote to unionise

Employees from Blizzard’s Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble teams have “voted strongly in favour” to unionise with Communications Workers of America (CWA).

Over 100 workers have voted to unionise, including software engineers, designers, artists, quality assurance testers, and producers.

The employees will become members of CWA Local 9510 in Irvine, California. Microsoft has recognised the union.

“Whether we are fighting for layoff protections, security for our remote workers, or reduced wage gaps, the pressures we face are making it harder to create the high-quality work we care about,” said organising committee member and senior 2D artist Uriah Voth.

“Organising gives us the opportunity to empower ourselves and challenge the instability and unfair conditions that undermine us.”

According to the CWA, this latest unit was inspired by the unionisation of more than 500 World of Warcraft developers last July.

“The Hearthstone team’s organizing effort is proof that creativity and collective power can go hand-in-hand,” added CWA Local 9510 president Jason Justice.

“These are some of the most talented developers and artists in the industry, and their decision to form a union sends a clear message that building great games starts with respecting those who are behind them.”

Over 1,900 Blizzard workers have joined the CWA, including from its Platform and Technology, Story and Franchise Development divisions, as well as developers from Diablo and Overwatch.

The Platform and Technology department was the latest division to unionise, having announced its decision last week (October 15).

To date, nearly 3,000 workers at Microsoft-owned studios have unionised with the CWA.

This includes employees at Raven Software, who filed a complaint against the studio, Activision, and Microsoft for allegedly refusing to bargain.