A first for Microsoft.
Nearly 1,900 workers ratified their first contract with Microsoft on 9 September, after roughly two years of bargaining with the company. The AI language is the part which makes this a unique contract.
The contract states that AI tools "may be useful in the game development process to support human judgment and creativity," with AI-assisted workflows remaining "subject to appropriate human control and review for accuracy and quality."
The operative clause makes any AI implementation that would "materially impact work performed by union employees" must be bargained between parties.
Not a total ban. A requirement that Microsoft cannot automate union work themselves, and has to sit down first.
Studios have leaned on AI tooling especially for QA automation, localisation and concept art over the past two years, and the standard sequence is deployment first, consequences later. This makes the consequences a negotiation rather than an announcement.
What else is in it
Layoff protections, which is where the OneBGS comparison writes itself:
- 60 days' notice or pay in lieu
- One week of severance per six months worked, plus four additional weeks regardless of tenure
- 14 months of recall rights into open positions across any Blizzard bargaining unit
Also included clauses are guaranteed wage increases, name credits for current and former employees on every game they worked on, a three-day hybrid week for designated roles with a route to apply for fully remote, disability accommodations, grievance procedures, and a successorship clause keeping the whole agreement intact if Blizzard is ever sold.
Blizzard's smaller units will be split, World of Warcraft with QA and Hearthstone; platform and technology with customer support, localisation, and story and franchise development; and Diablo with Overwatch. The contract runs four to five years depending on the group.
The timing
The contract was ratified just before BlizzCon in Anaheim, and in the middle of Microsoft cutting 3,200 roles across Xbox, hundreds of them union members. CWA locals in the US and Canada have taken legal action over how those layoffs were handled.
Overwatch bargaining committee member Simon Hedrick stated "I look forward to the day that everyone in the industry can enjoy the protections that this contract affords us, like increased severance and recall rights in the event of a layoff and the ability to grieve injustices in the workplace."
Blizzard president Johanna Faries called it "a significant milestone" reflecting "our shared commitment to continuing to work together in support of our teams and our players."
More:Blizzard's War on WoW Servers Has Always Been This Messy
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