March is shaping up to be another rough month for video game workers, especially those working at Activision Blizzard. The Call of Duty maker is set to fire another 897 employees across California by the end of March.
The details of the proposed layoffs are contained in the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) report summary. Activision Blizzard notified the necessary authorities about the layoffs on January 25, 2024, the same day Microsoft announced the layoff of 1,900 across its gaming division.
WARN Act mandates employers to give their employees 60-day notice before a closure or mass layoff. The advanced notice gives the employee and their families time to find an alternative job, transition or adjust to the potential job loss, and sometimes, time to acquire new skills to compete in the job market successfully.
Federal and State WARN provisions differ slightly. However, employers are usually mandated to notify their employees 30 to 60 days before a mass layoff or closure. Interestingly, WARN has a Work Sharing Program that encourages and incentivizes employers to avoid layoffs.
“Thinking about layoffs? Instead, apply for the Work Sharing Program. Cut hours and wages while we pay partial unemployment benefits. Keep great employees! Avoid the cost of hiring and training new employees when your business or the economy improves. This program has less impact on your unemployment taxes than a full layoff, and it can positively affect employee morale and loyalty.”
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WARN notices are continually updated and run a full-year cycle that starts from July 1 of one year and ends on June 30 of the following year. The record usually contains columns for the county/parish where the company is located, the date the notice was filed, the date it was processed, the date the notice takes effect, the name of the company, layoff/closure, number of employees impacted, and the company’s address.
🚨UPDATE🚨
We have confirmed that this was part of the January announcement and not a new layoff like initially suggested. Out of the 1,900 announced layoffs in the Microsoft gaming division, 897 will be Activision employees in California.
The restructuring was inevitable after Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer
The proposed March 30 layoffs will be the second massive layoff that will hit Activision Blizzard since the start of this year. According to sources familiar with the internal running of the company, Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard led to the duplication of roles, especially in the administrative department.
Consequently, the bulk of those impacted in the January layoff at Activision Blizzard were those in the administrative department. It is unclear if the upcoming layoffs will affect workers actively involved in game development and what that may mean for the future of Activision Blizzard games.
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During the January layoff, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer sent an internal memo to the employees of the company where he alleged that since Activision Blizzard and King joined Microsoft they have together “set priorities, identified areas of overlap, and ensured that we’re all aligned on the best opportunities for growth”.
“Looking ahead, we’ll continue to invest in areas that will grow our business and support our strategy of bringing more games to more players around the world. Although this is a difficult moment for our team, I’m as confident as ever in your ability to create and nurture the games, stories, and worlds that bring players together.”
Talking about bringing games to more players worldwide, Microsoft’s gaming executives appeared in a business update podcast in February, announcing that four games that were previously Xbox exclusives will be heading to rival platforms.
That announcement sparked controversy about the future of Xbox with many alleging that Microsoft wanted to stop making consoles. However, the Xbox executives addressed all that in the business update podcast where they also claimed that their next gaming hardware would be revolutionary technological leap.
