Blizzard, the mastermind behind Overwatch, Diablo, World of Warcraft, and many more titles has a controversial history for its workplace environment. If you have been following industry news since the start of 2022, you may know how some employees reached out anonymously to address the hostile environment they were subjected to, causing them even to leave the giant company.
But it seems like Blizzard is ready to turn over a new leaf by hiring a team that focuses on improving Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. These have now become their goals, which our team at TopTierList found on their recent job listing on LinkedIn. The position is for the Director of DEI, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Major Points
- Blizzard Entertainment is notorious for mistreating its employees. Even though the severity has been made public quite a few times, the situation has always been swept under the rug.
- However, they made claims to improve their environment in early 2022 and are finally taking some action, as suggested by the job listing.
- Not to mention, the job for position of Director of this team reveals how significant they want it to be.
Blizzard Entertainment has had multiple instances of workplace misconduct, along with some severely horrible cases. There was even a time when a woman sued Activision Blizzard for sexual harassment.
According to Lawyer Lisa Bloom, “Good versus evil wasn’t just in their games. For years, the women who work in the company have been fighting the monsters inside the company who treated them like dirt.”
Although such a job would be a dream for many gaming enthusiasts, it’s not the case for victims like Christine, who described their experience “When I would try to be more social and attended events, I’d be subjected to sexual harassment, unwanted advances, and comments… I just wanted to do my job and go home.”
As awful as it is, such misconduct barely made a dent in Blizzard’s reputation, as their games continued to do great, and they have since gone on to make even bigger titles, like the recent Overwatch 2.
But if their new job listing stands true, this might be an initiative on their side to improve their workplace environment. Since it is a massive company, it makes more sense for them to add much more changes, even on a smaller scale, which we hope they will.
Though their past has not been that good, it would be great if the current and future employees find a safe environment to work in. They want this team to be something that can fulfill their mission “to sustain an equitable and inclusive culture that respects and leverages diversity throughout the company, the industry, and the communities we serve. It’s reflected in our leadership and throughout our workforce, ultimately becoming the force multiplier behind the company achieving its aspirational mission of connecting the world through epic entertainment.”
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion(DEI) is their first good step to improve the situation. As much as we love their games and work, Blizzard is far from being a good workplace, but maybe the condition will get better once we dive into 2023.
What are your thoughts on this? Do you think it is too late for Blizzard to take the initiative? How should they improve their work environment? Share your thoughts with us below, and we will get back to you!
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