Activision-Blizzard draws consequences from the sexism scandal with 37 layoffs

In the sexism scandal surrounding Activision Blizzard, personal consequences are taken.

There is a new development in the sexism scandal surrounding publisher Activision-Blizzard. The company was sued by a Californian authority last July because of the toxic working atmosphere and has been publicly criticized ever since. Further lawsuits and a strike by the employees followed. According to a report, numerous dismissals and disciplinary measures have now been initiated.

Layoffs and other measures

It’s all about this: CoD publisher Activision Blizzard has been making headlines for several months. This was triggered by the lawsuit brought by the DFEH, a civil rights authority, which brought numerous abuses to light. These include: discrimination against women and minorities, harassment, unequal opportunities and unequal pay.

Company responds with layoffs: Now the top management is reacting like that Wall Street Journal reported, with 37 layoffs. In addition, there were unspecified disciplinary measures against 44 other employees. Company spokeswoman Helaine Klasky confirmed the figures.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the summary of the personnel measures should actually be published before the winter holidays. According to “people with knowledge”, the reason that this was postponed was that CEO Bobby Kotick believed it could make the problems appear bigger than previously thought.

The CEO himself was criticized during the scandal and shareholders called for his resignation. Kotick responded by saying he would only take the hat if he couldn’t solve the company’s problems quickly enough.

Reports on employee concerns

According to the Wall Street Journal, the summary containing the personnel measures also contains 700 reports on employee concerns, which deal with misconduct, among other things. However, this figure was disputed by the company spokeswoman.

According to Klasky, the number of 700 also includes statements that were made on social media and which, according to the spokeswoman, contain harmless concerns. On the other hand, she only speaks of a “small number” of potentially serious concerns. She also shared that the claims about Bobby Kotick were not accurate and that it was about being able to share “accurate data and analysis”.