Workers at Sega of America from two California offices have voted to favour a multi-department union. With hundreds of employees, it will be the largest multi-tiered video game union in the United States. This is the fifth one to form in the last several years, as more and more workers push to have their rights protected through a union.
The AEGIS-CWA will represent workers from sales, quality assurance, marketing, games as a service, and more. This is the first time a union has covered so many different departments and disciplines. Zenimax, Activision-Blizzard, Raven Software, and Tender Claws have all had their Q.A. workers covered, and understandably so. It is the number one job that has seen thousands of people overworked and underpaid for years.
WE WON!
We just won our union election 91-26.
Our 200+ member union is now the LARGEST multi-department union of organized workers in the ENTIRE gaming industry.
So excited to celebrate this win & head to the bargaining table w/ @SEGA to continue building this company we love! pic.twitter.com/2iy6loAruf
— AEGIS-CWA 💙 #UnionizeSEGA (@takesAEGIS) July 10, 2023
“We are overjoyed to celebrate our union election win as members of AEGIS-CWA,” Sega of America translator Ángel Gómez told the press. “From the start of this campaign, it has been clear that we all care deeply about our work at SEGA. Now, through our union, we’ll be able to protect the parts of our jobs we love, and strengthen the benefits, pay, and job stability available to all workers. Together we can build an even better SEGA. We hope our victory today is an inspiration to other workers across the gaming industry. Together, we can raise standards for all workers across the industry.”
In total, 117 Sega of America votes were tallied. Among them, 91 eligible employees voted in favour of the union, while 26 said ‘no.’ The pro-union push began earlier this year with members saying in part: “We are unionizing because we love the games that we work on, our coworkers, and working at SEGA. But unfortunately, for many, this job is not sustainable. We aim to make SEGA someplace where employees can thrive for many years.”
