[ad_1]
More than 100 employees of the Los Angeles-based Riot Games video game studio left work Monday afternoon to protest the company's forced arbitration policy on workplace conflict.
The protest comes after eight months of unrest in the company, which has been repeatedly accused of favoring a sexist and hostile work environment. Last year, Riot Games apologized for its documented culture for the first time in a scathing report reported by Kotaku in August 2018. The Riot culture once again became the focus of media attention when 39, a former high-level employee of Riot Games has published a blog on sexism, he said. he testified to the company.
Among the allegations in the article and in the lawsuit, there was information that women would be described as "hot", executives using the slogan "no does not necessarily mean no" and women having suffered unsolicited images of male anatomy.
In November, a current employee and a former employee filed a class action against discrimination based on sex, sexual harassment and unequal pay.
In December, the game maker "League of Legends" suspended its chief operating officer, Scott Gelb, for two months without pay, following reports of sexual misconduct. Gelb was accused of repeatedly having farted on employees, having stressed them and having hit their testicles as part of what has been described as a commonplace joke at the site of job.
The same week, in March, Gelb was to resume work. The company has announced that it has hired a diversity officer, Le Verge said.
And in April, Riot filed a petition requesting that the trial be sent to private arbitration. Private arbitration makes a class action almost impossible. It also removes the lawsuit from the eyes of the public.
As a result of this motion, Riot employees threatened to leave, Vice reported at the time. Leaders, including the new Diversity Officer, spoke to employees and promised them changes.
Riot Games is the latest in a series of technology companies affected by the protests of their employees against arbitration
Last week, Riot announced that it was changing its policy on forced arbitration, but only after the resolution of the dispute and only for new employees, thereby giving them the opportunity to opt out. forced arbitration "for sexual harassment and sexual assault," the statement said. blog post. He told current employees that he would tell them later if it allowed them to refrain from resorting to forced arbitration for the same requests.
The company also promised to improve its crop over the next 30, 60 and 90 days.
But the protesters were not satisfied with this decision and the disengagement therefore took place.
A reporter noted slogans on placards held by protesters who said: "It does not take all this to do what is right" and "I reported and he was promoted".
Another protester explained in a tweet"It should not be legal to force workers to arbitration when they experience sexual harassment – or any other discrimination, really – it's already not legal in many states." would like my company to be at the forefront of this problem!
Riot Games is not the only technology company facing workers' revolt against forced arbitration policies. Google has announced the end of forced arbitration involving sexual harassment complaints in February after the departure of its employees.
He followed up on Microsoft, which ended forced arbitration for sexual harassment at the end of 2017.
In late 2018, Susan Fowler, Uber's whistleblower, also called for the passing of legislation to end forced employee arbitration agreements. And in 2017, she also filed a brief with the Supreme Court, asking her to also rule against forced arbitration.
[ad_2]
Source link