Jessica Gonzalez (labor organizer)
Jessica Gonzalez | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1992 or 1993 (age 30–31) |
| Occupation | Labor organizer |
| Employer | A Better ABK Game Workers Alliance |
Jessica Gonzalez (born 1992 or 1993)
Career and activism
Gonzalez joined Activision Blizzard (ABK) in 2015 as a quality assurance (QA) tester. She left the company for a few years to work for Boundless Entertainment, but returned to ABK in 2019 until leaving the company in 2021 due to what she alleged to be a hostile working environment.[2][3][4] She worked briefly for a financial tech company following her departure,[5] while working part-time as an organizer with CODE-CWA. She later joined CODE-CWA full-time.[2][6]
Gonzalez also alleged that in QA at ABK, testers were treated as "second-class citizens", which ABK denies.[2] A former colleague told Axios that Gonzalez "was the spark that started the explosion", referring to the founding of A Better ABK,[7] which was founded in 2021 following a walkout in protest of the company's response to accusations of sexual harassment and discrimination.[8] Gonzalez and the worker organizers staged further walkouts during 2021 and 2022.[9]
Shortly after leaving ABK, Gonzalez, along with other A Better ABK organizers, started a
In 2021, Gonzalez helped form ABK Workers' Alliance.[11]
In 2022, she and former colleague Josh Miller began a podcast on the streaming platform Twitch called Weekly Standup discussing worker's rights and unionization in tech.[12] Also in 2022, Gonzalez appealed the $18 million settlement Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's concurrent California Department of Fair Employment and Housing v. Activision Blizzard lawsuit,[2] which was struck down by the courts on March 22, 2022.[13]
In 2022, Gonzalez co-founded Game Workers Alliance (GWA), a union made up of QA testers at Raven Software, a Subsidiary of ABK.[14] GWA is the first labor union at a AAA games developer.[15] Also in 2022, she, along with 11 other current and former ABK employees, formed an anti-discrimination committee.[16]
Personal life
Gonzalez lives in San Pedro, Los Angeles.[17]
See also
References
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Klar, Rebecca (July 18, 2022). "Changing the game in gaming". The Hill. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ Farokhmanesh, Megan (November 30, 2021). "Activision Blizzard walkout organizer resigns". Axios. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
- ^ Franzese, Tomas (December 2021). "This major Activision Blizzard resignation exposes a troubling new trend". Inverse. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
- ^ Wille, Matt (December 2021). "One of Activision's top organizers just walked out for good". Input. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
- ^ Francis, Bryant Francis (July 22, 2022). "Devs protest Activision Blizzard's response to abortion rights crisis". Game Developer. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
- ^ Farokhmanesh, Megan (November 30, 2021). "Activision Blizzard walkout organizer resigns". Axios. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ Totilo, Stephen; Farokhmanesh, Megan (December 9, 2021). "Activision Blizzard union efforts intensify". Axios. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ Limbong, Andrew (February 17, 2022). "Will Activision Blizzard workers unionize? Microsoft's deal complicates things". NPR.org. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ Bell, Brian (March 9, 2022). "With New Series Weekly Standup, Former Activision Blizzard Employees Are Raising Their Voices On Workers' Rights, Unionization". pastemagazine.com. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ Limbong, Andrew (May 24, 2022). "The Activision Blizzard union vote could signal a big change in the video game world". NPR.org. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ "@_TechJess" (Jessica Gonzalez) on Twitter
External links
- Weekly Standup on Twitch
- Jessica Gonzalez on Twitter
