Hundreds of union workers rally across North America to protest Xbox layoffs

Members of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union and their allies organized a series of protests under the banner 'Save Our Devs' in cities across the US and Canada. This is the second wave of demonstrations: the first took place in July, followed by another round after Microsoft announced its mass layoffs.

Xbox, part of Microsoft, has announced plans to eliminate 3,200 jobs before the end of the current fiscal year. Immediately following this announcement, 1,600 employees were laid off in July from notable subsidiaries including Obsidian, id Software, and ZeniMax Online Studios. Additionally, studios such as Double Fine Productions, Undead Labs, Ninja Theory, and Compulsion Games were divested by the Xbox maker, leading to further layoffs at those former companies.

In response, CWA and CWA Canada have filed legal action against Microsoft, alleging mishandling of the cuts. Microsoft stated it has reached out to the union to begin effects bargaining and remains committed to that process.

Workers from Xbox, including laid-off engineers from id Software and quest designers from Bethesda Game Studios, expressed concern that the company is ignoring federal labor laws. They noted that hundreds of employees with decades of development experience have been lost in recent years.

'Each of the 1,600 people from July's layoffs has their own unique tale, and every developer still employed at an Xbox studio lives in anxious fear, waiting to discover if they are one of the next 1600 stories,' said John Roberts, Principal Engine Programmer at id Software and a CWA Local 6215 member who was laid off. 'We cannot allow Microsoft to set a precedent of ignoring federal labor law, leaving so many union workers discarded.'

Stephanie Zachariadis, a quest designer at Bethesda Game Studios, also noted that the studio has lost much veteran talent in recent years. 'When I first started working [at Bethesda Game Studios], I was in awe... Now? The legends who filled those trophy cases are, for the most part, gone, laid off, or driven away,' she added.