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Activision Blizzard Settles Gender Discrimination Lawsuit with California Department for $54M
Activision Blizzard and the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) have reached a settlement of about $54 million over allegations of gender and pay discrimination. This is the second largest settlement that the California Civil Rights Department has negotiated and is still subject to court approval.
The settlement requires Activision Blizzard to take steps to ensure fair pay and promotion practices at the company and provide monetary relief to affected women who were employees or contract workers in California between October 12, 2015, and December 31, 2020.
Following a two-year investigation, the California Civil Rights Department filed the lawsuit against Activision Blizzard in 2021 for alleged violations of California’s Equal Pay Act and Fair Employment and Housing Act. Activision Blizzard also reached a consent decree with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on these issues back in 2021.
Activision Blizzard has yet to release an official comment, but has previously denied the charges and conducted an investigation that determined the allegations were false according to a report by its board of directors.
Activision Blizzard’s Chief Administrative Officer, Brian Bulatao, highlighted the company’s effort to increase inclusion and diversity in its 2022 ESG report, which includes hiring its first dedicated chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer and appointing its first head of inclusive game design. The company has also partnered with Reboot Representation to increase the number of Black, Latin, and Native American women in technology.
Under the settlement, $45.7 million will go to a compensation fund for workers and will also require Activision Blizzard to retain an independent consultant to evaluate its compensation and promotion policies and training materials.
If approved, this settlement would become the second-largest by CRD, behind Riot Games’ $100 million settlement over gender discrimination. The California Civil Rights Department originally estimated Activision Blizzard’s potential liability to be nearly $1 billion based on 2,500 employees who might have claims against the company.
