The workers at Bethesda Game Studios have joined the Communications Workers of America (CWA), and they say they’re the first Microsoft video game studio to form a wall-to-wall union. A total of 241 workers have either signed an authorization card or have indicated that they wanted to join a union through an online portal. The “wall-to-wall” nature of their organization means the CWA will be representing workers across job descriptions and divisions — and not just one type — including artists, engineers, programmers and designers. Bethesda is the developer behind Starfield and the Elder Scrolls and Fallout games.
Microsoft has already recognized the union, so workers at the studio’s Maryland office have officially joined CWA Locals 2108, while those in its Texas office have become members of CWA Locals 6215. “We are so excited to announce our union at Bethesda Game Studio and join the movement sweeping across the video game industry,” Mandi Parker, Bethesda Senior System Designer, said. “It is clear that every worker can benefit from bringing democracy into the workplace and securing a protected voice on the job. We’re thrilled to get down to brass tacks and win a fair contract, proving that our unity is a source of real power to positively shape our working conditions, our lives, and the company as a whole.”
Bethesda’s workers join the growing number of unionized personnel in video games. In January 2023, quality assurance workers at ZeniMax Studios, the parent company of Bethesda, banded together to form what was then the largest union in the industry with 300 members. It lost the distinction as the largest union in video games when 600 quality assurance workers at Activision, which is also owned by Microsoft, joined the CWA this year.
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