Bethesda Game Studios workers have unionized

Bethesda Game Studios workers have unionized

Image: Bethesda Game Studios

More than 200 developers at Bethesda Game Studios, the studio behind hit franchises like The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, have unionized with the Communications Workers of America (CWA). 241 workers, including “artists, engineers, programmers and designers,” have signed union authorization cards or “indicated that they wanted union representation via an online portal,” according to a CWA press release.

Microsoft has recognized the union, the CWA says; the company has already recognized unions formed by Activision QA workers and ZeniMax Studios QA workers. The CWA describes this as “the first wall-to-wall union at a Microsoft video game studio,” meaning that all eligible job titles will be represented by the CWA instead of just one type of worker, according to the CWA’s Catalina Brennan-Gatica. (Until now, all of the unions at Microsoft-owned studios have only been formed by QA workers.)

We, a majority of developers at Bethesda Game Studios Dallas, Rockville, and Austin, are ecstatic to announce the formation of our union with @CWAUnion. Together as #OneBGSUSA, we advocate for the betterment of every developer at BGS, setting the new standard for our industry.

— OneBGS_USA (@OneBGS_USA) July 19, 2024

The Bethesda workers will be members of CWA Local 2108 in Maryland and CWA Local 6215 in Texas.

Microsoft didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.