Employees at Raven Software, known for its work on the Call of Duty franchise, finally have a union contract with Microsoft. This happened nearly years after quality assurance (QA) workers at the company voted to unionize.

Workers voted unanimously to ratify the first contract between the company's Game Workers Alliance-CWA (GWA-CWA) members and Microsoft. This contract includes a guaranteed 10-percent wage increase over two years, along with additional raises through "merit and promotions."

It also eliminates crunch time, with a requirement to give employees seven days' notice for mandatory overtime. There will be no excessive overtime on back-to-back weeks and "no mandatory overtime of any duration for the majority of weeks in a quarter."

The contract also mandates a "fair promotions process" along with expanded disability accommodations. Finally, there are a spate of layoff protections, including severance, recall rights, COBRA subsidies and career transition services.

As previously stated, these workers voted to unionize three years ago. At the time, it was the first union at Activision Blizzard or any major US publisher. This was before Microsoft scooped up Activision.

The past three years have been fraught for Raven's QA workers. An investigation found that Activision had been withholding raises from unionizing workers and the company's top brass were accused of "bad faith bargaining." Workers at ZeniMax, another company owned by Microsoft, secured a contract in June.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/raven-software-gets-its-union-contract-with-microsoft-three-years-after-voting-to-organize-150133353.html?src=rss

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© Unsplash / Matthew Manuel

Uber drivers in British Columbia, Canada have joined a union and are now seeking the first collective deal for ride-share drivers in the country, according to Bloomberg. Drivers from Greater Victoria, in particular, have joined UFCW 1518, the province's largest private sector union, which currently represents over 28,000 workers across multiple sectors. "The organizing victory represents a new chapter for app-based workers, demonstrating that all workers deserve a voice in their working conditions, regardless of how technology shapes their workplace," UFCW 1518 said in a statement. 

The company told Bloomberg that the bargaining unit was certified after enough drivers in Victoria signed union cards. It was made possible by a change of labor laws in the province last year that allowed app workers to unionize. Drivers in the city have been organizing for months to influence their working conditions and have a say in future changes to the ride-sharing platform. Specifically, they're seeking greater transparency around trip rates and earnings, improved health and safety protections, as well as fair processes when it comes to account deactivations. Uber told Bloomberg that it will now meet with the union to hash out the terms of the collective agreement. 

In 2024, a group in Quebec formed the first union for Amazon warehouse workers in Canada. That group of workers accused Amazon of blocking its organizing efforts, though it eventually succeeded in getting the company to come to the negotiation table. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/uber-drivers-in-british-columbia-canada-have-unionized-122434476.html?src=rss

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