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Tag: communication workers of america

  • Blizzard teams working on Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble unionize

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    Blizzard developers working on Hearthstone and Warcraft Rumble have formed a new union, the latest in a series of labor wins at the Microsoft-owned studio. The over 100-person unit is represented by the Communication Workers of America (CWA), and counts “software engineers, designers, artists, quality assurance testers and producers” among its members.

    Inspiration to form the new union came from the successful organizing efforts of Blizzard’s World of Warcraft workers last year. The staff behind the classic MMO formed the Warcraft Gamemakers Guild last year, and were followed by similar unions representing developers working on Diablo and Overwatch earlier in 2025. According to the CWA, over 1,900 workers at Blizzard are now represented by the organization.

    The new union is arriving at a critical time. Blizzard’s parent company Microsoft made major cuts across its gaming division this summer, including layoffs that reportedly led to Blizzard winding down development on Warcraft Rumble. Union membership has flourished across Microsoft’s studios because of neutrality agreements the company signed with CWA respecting its workers’ right to organize at Activision Blizzard in 2022 and ZeniMax in 2024, but the environment is on the brink of possible change.

    Aftermath reports that the neutrality agreement covering Activision Blizzard workers expires in October 2025, which could make forming future unions more difficult. Microsoft signed its first neutrality agreement to reassure regulators about its $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, but now that the deal is done and dusted, the company has less of a reason to play nice.

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  • An Apple Store in Oklahoma City is close to approving an union agreement for its workers

    An Apple Store in Oklahoma City is close to approving an union agreement for its workers

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    Talks between Apple and the union for the Apple Store in Oklahoma City have produced a tentative agreement that includes new benefits and protections for its staff. The Penn Square Mall Apple Store in Oklahoma City announced they’ve reached a “tentative labor agreement” with Apple and the Communication Workers of America (CWA), according to a released statement.

    Terms are still being negotiated between both parties but the benefits for the store’s employees would be significant. The three-year agreement reached between the CWA and Apple would give employees a wage increase of up to 11.5 percent. An Apple spokesperson said by email that if the contract is ratified, employees would receive a 4 percent raise in the first year of employment and 3 percent in the second and third year each “based on employee performance.”

    The agreement would also offer employees guaranteed paid time off and health and other benefits, allow employees to have a say in scheduling and the establishment of a “safer and more democratic workplace” through a grievance submission process with committees overseeing safety, health and working relations. An Apple spokesperson also noted the scheduling options “were provided to all other US stores in 2022.”

    The Oklahoma City Apple Store had been working to form a union becoming the second Apple Store in the US to unionize. Employees passed a strike authorization vote in August that passed with unanimous support and started a picket in front of the store ahead of bargaining sessions in early September. Workers will vote to ratify the tentative agreement on September 22.

    CWA District 6 Vice President Derrick Osobase called the agreement achievement “a historic day for our members who have now secured a contract at the world’s most profitable company.”

    The Apple Store in the Towson Town Center in became the first location to unionize. Members approved the union in 2022 with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). A store in the Cumberland Mall in tried to form a union in 2022 with the CWA but workers called it off accusing Apple of committing “repeated violations of the National Labor Relations Act.”

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    Danny Gallagher

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