Judge Approves Activision Settlement Over Employee Treatment

A US judge has approved a settlement filed last year with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. That was the last step before the settlement is official. It concerns an amount of 18 million dollars.

This one approval means Activision Blizzard will put $18 million in a special fund. That fund will be used for employees of the game company who have previously filed claims because they were victims of the culture of sexual harassment within the company. The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was one of the parties that sued the game maker for this. The settlement was announced last year, but is now official with court approval.

Employees who were employed by the company between September 1, 2016 and March 29, may file a claim for “sexual harassment, pregnancy discrimination, or related acts.” All senior employees must also undergo training on intimidation and discrimination, and more money will be made available for the mental health of employees. The settlement and the terms are valid for three years.

Activision Blizzard has the settlement confirmed. Bobby Kotick, the game company’s CEO, says his company will continue its efforts. “Our goal is to make Activision Blizzard an industry model, and we will continue to focus on eliminating harassment and discrimination in our workplace. The court’s approval of this settlement is an important step in ensuring that our employees have recourse if they have experienced any form of harassment or retaliation.”

This is not the end of Activision Blizzard. In July last year, for example, a lawsuit was filed by the state of California. According to that indictment, there is a broad culture of sexual abuse and sexual harassment within the company. After that charge came out, a then-director of Blizzard Entertainment already left. The state of California, specifically the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, has tried to block the judge’s current approval because it could damage its own business. However, an attempt to do so was rejected by the court. The state now plans to appeal this judicial approval. This California own case is still ongoing.