After three union staff members were laid off unexpectedly, the IGN Creators Guild alleges that it has filed Unfair Labor Practice charges against IGN and is asking readers to help pressure the company to negotiate.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the guild appeals to the community for support. The statement includes three email addresses belonging to members of management, urging IGN management to engage in direct negotiation rather than using outside counsel.
The guild states that it was taken by surprise by the axing of the three staff members on March 7. The video game media site is accused of refusing to negotiate with the guild over the layoffs and claiming that the decision was made before the company recognized the union. The guild views this as a significant breach of trust.
The guild contends that the company is not in economic trouble and could have filled the openings with the laid-off staff members. IGN is also accused of avoiding genuine negotiation through legal maneuvering.
IGN representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment from TheWrap.
The former senior editor and producer for IGN, Joshua Yehl, confirmed that he was one of the affected employees in a post on the social media site formerly known as Twitter. Former senior editor and producer for IGN Joshua Yehl confirmed he was one of the affected employees in a post on the social media site formerly known as Twitter. Former senior editor and producer for IGN Joshua Yehl confirmed he was one of the affected employees in a post on the social media site formerly known as Twitter.
Employees at IGN voted to unionize in February, and IGN voluntarily recognized the union after. The guild expressed its primary goals, including the desire to see IGN succeed in the rapidly changing digital media landscape and to secure the company's future. The Creators Guild listed its most important goals as fair pay, affordable health insurance, protection against layoffs, and increased diversity within the company. The Creators Guild listed its most important goals as fair pay, affordable health insurance, protection against layoffs, and increased diversity within the company.
The Creators Guild listed its most important goals as fair pay, affordable health insurance, protection against layoffs, and increased diversity within the company.
Read the full letter below.
On March 7, 2024, IGN Management blindsided the IGN Creators Guild with three layoffs. This decision was made despite the fact that the company is in no economic distress, and without consulting the union. This decision shocked us, given the fact that the company voluntarily recognized our guild. The company is claiming that these decisions were made prior to our recognition. Failing to approach us prior to the layoffs, and instead only choosing to bargain over the effects of said layoffs, is a massive breach of trust between union employees and management.
The erosion of trust is only furthered by the fact that there are currently seven open positions at the company and our three colleagues could be slotted into many of them. There were plenty of alternative options to utilize the abundance of resources between these three team members. This layoff was a choice, not a need.
“Instead of collaborating with us to move our colleagues into these available positions, the company is using legal maneuvers to avoid us and is putting the jobs of three people who have a combined 23+ years of experience with the company at risk. This has had a negative impact on staff, and will continue to do so as we enter IGN’s busy events schedule, including the newly established IGN Live. The expertise of our affected members is knowledge that we can’t afford to lose, and a significant setback to the teams who depended on them across departments.”
“We created this union to show that we won’t accept this insensitive treatment of our jobs. IGN depends on us to be innovative, to adapt, and to find solutions to numerous challenges both from outside and within, but they are not willing to do the same when it comes to looking after their staff.”
“We are now reaching out to our community. Join us in demanding that IGN management meet with us at the negotiation table instead of communicating with us through external lawyers (@yaelprough, @PeerlGN, @jwhdavidson). In the meantime, we have filed Unfair Labor Practice charges and have requested that IGN agree to comprehensive layoff and just cause language for our entire unit to prevent a situation like this in the future.”
“We demand that IGN Management negotiate with us as a whole to rebuild trust between the company and the guild. We are also insisting that IGN Management do the right thing and give our affected teammates the consideration—or at the very least the severance—that they deserve. We urge you to support us in doing the same.”
