Following a wave of mass layoffs that impacted an estimated 9,100 employees at Microsoft, many of whom were in its Xbox gaming division, the union of employees at Xbox subsidiary ZeniMax have responded with a statement explaining the current employment status of its members.
Today, ZeniMax Online Studios United (ZOSU), which represents employees on both The Elder Scrolls Online and the cancelled unannounced MMO, issued a lengthy statement addressing the layoffs and project cancellations. Critically, ZOSU confirmed that as of today, its members are all still employed by Microsoft and receiving pay and benefits, though this is likely not to be the case forever.
Per the statement, worker representatives of the union are currently bargaining with the company over how the workers will move forward following the shuttering of the MMO. While the union acknowledges that layoffs may be in the future for some members, “as a result of our organizing, we are able to ensure that those impacted will be able to depart with dignity.”
ZOSU was formed just last December, consisting at the time of its organizing of 461 employees across ZeniMax Online Studios. This number included web developers, designers, engineers, and graphic artists at ZeniMax Online Studios working on The Elder Scrolls Online and the unannounced MMO. While ZOSU still has yet to reach a contract agreement with Microsoft, its sibling union ZeniMax Workers United, which represents ZeniMax QA workers, reached an agreement at the end of May.
ZOSU’s statement is published in full below:
Earlier this month, Microsoft indefinitely shelved an unannounced MMORPG at ZeniMax Online Studios, a shock to the 222 ZOSU-CWA developers working on the project. It has been heartening and validating to see our game mentioned in the press and by players that would have loved to see the results of our work.
Undoubtedly, a future has been stolen from many of us and our community will never experience an amazing game. However, despite discussions regarding the status of our employment, the fact is: we have not yet been laid off.
While we understand that for most of us something like a layoff is inevitable, last December both the teams behind The Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) and the unannounced project voted overwhelmingly to form a union and establish ZeniMax Online Studios United-CWA (ZOSU-CWA). Worker-volunteers elected to represent the interests of our union are currently bargaining with Microsoft for the benefit of our impacted teammates.
While Microsoft and ZOSU-CWA bargain over how we move forward following the project closure, the developers behind the unannounced project remain employees of ZeniMax Online Studios with full pay and benefits.
On July 2nd, our lives were upended without prior notice or communication from Microsoft leadership and without clear understanding about the status of our employment. In light of this, our union came together with urgency, gathering and distributing information and resources to our affected members.
Where Microsoft has failed to support the talented craftspeople who have generated billions in revenue, our union has stepped up to provide clarity and support.
It is true that a layoff may be in the future for some of our members. However, as a result of our organizing, we are able to ensure that those impacted will be able to depart with dignity.
More importantly, the work of ZOSU-CWA will continue so that our remaining teammates — the stalwart developers of ESO — can follow in the footsteps of our colleagues across other departments and studios at Microsoft, including our union siblings at ZeniMax Workers United (ZWU-CWA). We look forward to other units who will soon ratify fair contracts that will guarantee the rights we all deserve.
The impact of the massive Microsoft layoffs earlier this month on Xbox specifically was wide, and remains not fully understood. We’ve since learned that Everwild and Perfect Dark are no longer being developed, and The Initiative has shut down.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to [email protected].
