Last night, reports came out that the state of California's Department of Fair Employment and Housing had filed a lawsuit against Activision Blizzard for an alleged "frat boy" workplace culture at the company. The report can be found here and it should be noted there is a trigger warning on the content. It is an ugly report that ex-employees are corroborating across social media.
After reporting on the incident, The Verge received a statement from Activision Blizzard that denied the content of the lawsuit and alleged that the DFEH is falsifying information and that it is "irresponsible behavior from unaccountable State bureaucrats that are driving many of the State's best businesses out of California."
"The DFEH includes distorted, and in many cases false, descriptions of Blizzard's past," writes the company. "We have been extremely cooperative with the DFEH throughout their investigation, including providing them with extensive data and ample documentation, but they refused to inform us what issues they perceived. They were required by law to adequately investigate and to have good faith discussions with us to better understand and to resolve any claims or concerns before going to litigation, but they failed to do so. Instead, they rushed to file an inaccurate complaint, as we will demonstrate in court."
The statement continues to allege that Activision Blizzard has changed over the years since the DFEH began its investigation into its workplace. According to the statement, the company has made significant changes to its workplace which includes internal programs for employees to report issues anonymously, an employee relations team for investigating claims, and an "Ask List" with a confidential integrity hotline. The statement also stresses that all employees must undergo regular anti-harassment training, something that has been required at the company for years now.
"We are confident in our ability to demonstrate our practices as an equal opportunity employer that fosters a supportive, diverse, and inclusive workplace for our people, and we are committed to continuing this effort in the years to come. It is a shame that the DFEH did not want to engage with us on what they thought they were seeing in their investigation," the statement concludes.