A number of current and former Activision Blizzard employees have established an anti-discrimination committee to combat sex and gender discrimination at the Call of Duty publisher.
The 12-strong committee has been formed as the company continues to deal with the fallout from numerous harassment and misconduct allegations that resulted in government investigations and the departure of multiple senior figures.
As reported by The Washington Post, the committee has already submitted a list of demands to Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, diversity officer Kristen Hines, and chief human resources officer Julie Hodges.
Specifically, the committee is pushing for undocumented chats with human resources to be scrapped, and wants Activision Blizzard to let staff meet with the equal employment opportunity coordinator to discuss diversity and inclusion initiatives.
They’re also asking the company to restrict retaliation against employees who file disputes and make independent investigations into discrimination claims the standard. Other demands include the provision of private lactation rooms, 12 weeks of paid parental leave as opposed to the 10 weeks currently offered, and more support for trans workers before and after they transition, including the creation of an employee trans network.
Responding to the committee, Activision Blizzard spokesperson Jessica Taylor said the company has already taken steps to ensure some of those demands are met.
“We appreciate that these employees want to join with us to further build a better Activision Blizzard and continue the progress we have already made,” said Talylor in a statement handed to The Washington Post.
“We have, for example, already upgraded our lactation facilities, waived arbitration, hired new DEI and EEO leaders, and collaborated with employees to make our policies and processes more Trans inclusive, just to name a few issues the letter raises.”
The news comes just days after Raven Software QA workers at Activision Blizzard successfully voted to form the first union at a triple-A game company in the United States. The successful unionization efforts of those Raven employees was a notable victory, and came after Activision Blizzard allegedly utilized union busting tactics in a bid to frustrate those involved.