Blizzard staffer alleges that Proletariat studio culture isn't progressive
UPDATE: Blizzard is currently looking into the inclusivity concerns at the games company
Original Story, Monday, January 30:Sign up for the GI Daily here to get the biggest news straight to your inbox
A Blizzard employee alleges that the culture at Proletariat studio has not progressed since they joined in 2019.
In a series of posts on Twitter, senior graphics engineer Benny Wilson explained that staffers were openly disrespected.
"I've seen seniors yelling at young employees, women crying in meetings, 'fat lady' jokes," they said.
"White men have doubted my experiences with racism, and they disagree with me when I say the studio isn't inclusive."
They added that female colleagues have shared that they've been yelled at while leadership watched.
Additionally, Wilson said that these issues were reported multiple times to HR over the years.
In a statement sent to GamesIndustry.biz, Wilson explained that one of Proletariat's founders mocked a union organizer for leaving the company in their union slack channel.
When employees called them out, another company founder said that staffers were hand-wringing over sarcastic comments.
Wilson explained that this response is why they believe the studio has inclusivity issues.
Wilson also said they were ignored when they asked Proletariat to remove its Black Lives Matter statement in 2020. The request was made due to the microaggressions they've experienced while working at the studio.
Their allegations came days after the Communication Workers of America withdrew its request for a unionization vote at Proletariat.
Update Tuesday, January 31:Blizzard has issued a response to allegations regarding Proletariat's studio culture.
"We're aware of these concerns and are looking into them. We want to have an inclusive workplace culture for all our employees and we take these concerns very seriously," a Blizzard spokesperson said.