Activision Blizzard shareholder says company response does not go “far enough”

Today, one of Activision Blizzard’s shareholders published a letter saying the company’s proposed remedies for the pervasive allegations of sexual assault and discrimination “do not go far enough.” As first reported by AxesSOC Investment Group acknowledged the improved response from Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick to previous “deaf-mute” statements, but also said his statement did not adequately address ” the deep and widespread problem of equity, inclusion and management of human capital in the company. “

SOC specifically cited the retention of anti-union law firm WilmerHale as one of the flaws in Activision Blizzard’s strategy. The letter stated that the company “has no history of discovering wrongdoing”; that the lead investigator, Stephanie Avakian, has no experience investigating workplace harassment and abuse; and that the scope of the investigation is insufficient to address the discrimination issues prevalent in the company.

SOC Investment Group offered Activision Blizzard a list of changes to make, including increasing diversity on the board, participating in a fairness review, and clawing back bonuses from found guilty executives. harassment or harassment.

The letter also proposed additional changes to the executive bonus structure asking Activision Blizzard not to award bonuses in 2021 and to make future bonuses conditional on the company meeting specific diversity and inclusion goals. . Last year, Ubisoft made similar changes to its bonus structure after multiple allegations of sexual assault and harassment were made by current and former employees.

Last month, the state of California sued Activision Blizzard for what it called a culture of “constant sexual harassment.” Kotick called the allegations “disturbing” after Chief Compliance Officer Frances Townsend said the lawsuit was “baseless” and the allegations “distorted”. In response, Blizzard employees staged a walkout and created Better ABK, an employee advocacy group calling for an end to forced arbitration, more diverse hiring and recruiting practices and greater pay transparency. The edge contacted Activision Blizzard for a response.