Activision, publisher of the Call of Duty series, states that it has been "mischaracterized" by the recent report saying that the company disregards workplace diversity initiatives.
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organisations (AFL-CIO for short) has proposed to Activision Blizzard and Electronic Arts a hiring initiative which is inspired by the NFL's "Rooney Rule." To those who are unacquainted with the requirement, it mandates that every team with a head coach, general manager, or equivalent front office opportunity must interview "at least one or more diverse candidates." It's not just the NFL that abides by this rule; the England national football team uses it for all interviews for the position of manager, and the Mansfield Rule assesses US legal firms, asking for 30% of the possible candidates for leadership and governance roles, equity partner promotions, and lateral positions to be from underrepresented groups in the profession.
In an article titled "Activision Is Resisting Diversity Hiring Push by America's Unions," Vice described how a lawyer for Activision Blizzard wrote a letter rebuffing the AFL-CIO's initiative, calling it "an unworkable encroachment on the Company's ability to run its business and compete for talent in a highly competitive, fast-moving market." On the other hand, EA said that it was "committed to maintaining hiring practices that promote inclusion and diversity," but would think the proposal over before integrating it in its recruitment methods.
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It was not an excellent look for Activision Blizzard, especially as a lot of companies in this industry want to do better when it comes to representation, both within games and within the teams that make them. Now, Activision Blizzard is maintaining that the letter sent by its lawyer to the AFL-CIO has been taken out of context, and that its portfolio of titles have "uniquely influenced popular culture and have helped to increase tolerance and inclusion."
"Activision Blizzard is committed to inclusive hiring practices and to creating a diverse workforce; it is essential to our mission. Vice completely mischaracterized the SEC filing made by our outside attorneys. In fact, our hiring practices are rooted in ensuring diversity for all roles. We engage in this aggressively and successfully. Our objection was rooted in the fact that the AFL-CIO proposal failed to adequately consider how to apply these practices in all of the countries we operate in," read the statement supplied by president and chief operating officer Daniel Alegre.
Featured Image Credit: ActivisionTopics: News, Call of Duty