Activision Blizzard has had an $18 million settlement with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will be approved by US federal courts.
Once approved, Activision Blizzard has stated that in addition to the creation of an $18 million fund that will compensate eligible claimants it will enhance its policies and harassment prevention training. The company will also implement an expanded performance-review system.
Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick commetned: “Our goal is to make Activision Blizzard a model for the industry, and we will continue to focus on eliminating harassment and discrimination from our workplace. The court’s approval of this settlement is an important step in ensuring that our employees have mechanisms for recourse if they experienced any form of harassment or retaliation.”
Making changes
Having experience in gender discrimination and harassment, Stacy Jackson became an internal EEO coordinator at Activision Blizzard on March 16 to bring about improvements in the company. A third-party equal employment opportunity consultant is also to provide ongoing oversight of compliance with the agreement.
Additionally, a new tool has already been launched to track each application, interview and hire at the company with data on female representation as well as ethnic groups.
Kotick continued: “The Court’s approval is a vital step in our journey to ensuring that everyone at Activision Blizzard always feels safe, heard and empowered. We hope the court’s findings – including its view that many of the objections raised about our settlement were inaccurate and speculative – will dispel any confusion that may exist. With all of the terms of the settlement reviewed and approved, we can move forward.”
Approval by the federal court would bring an end to one of a number of lawsuits relating to discrimination and sexual harassment, but others such as an allegation of “unwanted sexual harassment” leading to an employee’s suicide are still ongoing.