Bethesda union OneBGS has said it has filed a legal complaint against the developer “for continuing to violate labour laws in Canada.”
The union alleged that the same day that Bethesda announced its roadmap for future Fallout releases last Friday (July 17), it also issued termination letters to Canadian employees at Bethesda Montreal impacted by recent Xbox layoffs.
“That same day, they told their laid-off Bethesda Montreal employees that they would receive the smallest severance legally possible without bargaining with the union,” the union wrote.
OneBGS stated this contradicted assurances given during a July 6 video call, when employees were told they would remain employed until September while Bethesda negotiated severance terms with the union.
“These letters stated that the Canadians are to receive the bare minimum in terms of severance: eight weeks of pay in lieu of the minimum legal notice, any outstanding vacation pay, etc. They were to also immediately lose their group benefits health insurance,” the union stated.
“Bethesda and Xbox leadership depend on our labour to make them millions, and yet when we do, we are disposed of. The cycle of workers paying for the mistakes of management ends here.”
These claims follow broader allegations that Xbox conducted layoffs “unlawfully”, without providing notice or consulting recognised unions.
An unfair labour practice (ULP) charge was filed earlier this week against Microsoft and its subsidiaries, including Xbox, ZeniMax Media Inc, Id Software, and Bethesda Game Studios.
“The unions CWA and CWA Canada have jointly filed unfair labor practice complaints against Microsoft alleging the company has unlawfully fired people without giving notice to or discussing it with the union as the employer is legally obliged to do when we are in the middle of ongoing bargaining a collective agreement,” CWA Canada president Carmel Smyth told Game Developer.
In response, Xbox said: “We respect our employees’ right to make their voices heard, and we recognise that this is a difficult time for many. We reached out to the union to begin effects bargaining and are committed to that process. We remain focused on supporting impacted employees through this transition while positioning the organisation for long-term strength.”
