Activision Blizzard ends work-from-home – sparking employee revolt

The Activision Blizzard King (ABK) Workers Alliance have issued a statement, implying that “soft layoffs” would be coming at the company, as some employees will have no choice but to leave over a new mandate removing work-from-home options for employees.

On November 30, Quality Assurance employees at Activision in Minneapolis, Austin, and El Segundo were informed that hybrid work will no longer be an option in January. This came just months after the hybrid work policy was implemented, after which “hundreds” of employees attempted to seek permanent work from home arrangements due to issues with finances or disability, among other reasons.

As a result of this change, many employees are reportedly planning to leave Activision.

The full statement from ABK Workers Alliance, published on December 18, read as follows:

“On November 30th, Activision QA employees in Minneapolis, Austin, and El Segundo received an email announcing that hybrid work will be ended in January and employees will be expected to fully return to the office with zero work from home days. The company will be offering severance to affected employees who choose to end their employment with Activision as a result.    

“The job security of many QA employees was already on shaky ground due to the announcement of hybrid work earlier this year. Since then, hundreds of employees have been in correspondence with the Accommodations team to try to receive permanent work from home arrangements due to disability, financial issues, or other factors. Many of these requests have been outright denied and many more have been offered in-office accommodations that do not adequately meet the needs of employees.

“This has resulted in many employees being forced out of the company in a soft layoff. It is our belief that the removal of hybrid work will result in many, many more employees being forced out of the company and into a desperate situation.    

This decision also leaves our most vulnerable employees behind, especially our disabled and medically vulnerable employees, many who have had their work from home accommodations requests denied with inadequate reasoning, even when they provided medical paperwork. With sick season in full gear and all Covid precautions removed, this creates a dangerous situation for all employees, but especially for disabled and immunocompromised employees, as well as medically vulnerable family members and roommates.   

“It is also important to us that we recognize the financial impact this decision will have on employees. Many employees that were hired during the height of WFH live a significant distance from the offices. The employees affected who remain at the company have been commuting significant distances to the office and have felt the financial impact of doing so in regards to gas prices. But also, these long commutes mean that affected employees have less work-life balance, spending most of their time commuting and working and less time with their families, loved ones, and other aspects of their life.    

“Taking away the one day that affected employees had to work in an environment that was better for their health, mental health, finances, and work-life balance means that more employees will be forced out of the company.   

“However, this decision also affects employees who choose to stay at the company. With many employees being forced out, their responsibilities will fall on the ones who will remain, creating a more stressful environment and lower quality products.   

“A one-size-fits-all mandate harms us all. Everyone loses: the company, the products, the players, and, most of all, the employees. We stand firm in our resolve that the decision to WFH or RTO should be made on an individual basis with consideration to the needs of each employee.”

The company will be offering severance to employees who choose to leave due to this new policy change.

Whether this statement encourages Activision executives to change their mind on the new return-to-office policy remains to be seen.