Activision Blizzard will pay $54 million to settle their gender discrimination lawsuit.
Activision Blizzard will pay $54 million to settle their gender discrimination lawsuit
The games studio, which has produced fan-favourite titles, including ‘World of Warcraft’ ‘Diablo’ and ‘Overwatch’, was sued in July 2021 after it was alleged that female employees were subject to sexual harassment, lower salaries and unfair treatment in the workplace. In a statement to CNBC, an Activision spokesperson said: “We appreciate the importance of the issues addressed in this agreement and we are dedicated to fully implementing all the new obligations we have assumed as part of it.”
The court has stressed that around $45 million of the settlement will be compensation for the female employees at the company, whilst Activision Blizzard has ensured that all of their workers will be paid and treated equally going forward.
It had also been determined that it was the company’s leadership team, including CEO Bobby Kotick, “acted improperly or ignored or tolerated a culture of harassment or discrimination", and will therefore step down in the coming weeks.
Previously, the gaming giant had settled another sexual harassment and discrimination claim in September 2021, in which the company agreed to pay out $18 million in compensation.
As a result of the allegations, Activision Blizzard had seen mass protests, and walkouts, which was exacerbated once an employee took her own life last year, with her family claiming it was due to the sexual harassment she faced at work.