Sega allegedly threatened unionized workers with layoffs

by Danny Craig  · 
Sega allegedly threatened unionized workers with layoffs
Sega

It has been claimed that Sega threatened some of its unionized employees with mass layoffs, resulting in an unfair labor practice complaint being filed against the company.

The details:

  • As reported by Kotaku, Sega reportedly met with members of the Allied Employees Guild Improving Sega (AEGIS-CWA) on November 6 and presented them with a proposal to "phase out" all temporary workers by February 2024. The layoffs would affect roughly 40% of the union's membership, or approximately 80 people.

  • AEGIS-CWA has now filed a labor complaint with the National Labor Relations Board, accusing Sega of violating rules regarding directly negotiating with unionized employees rather than with the union itself. "It's disheartening to see such actions from Sega, as it unmistakably demonstrates bad faith bargaining and a refusal to recognize the valuable contributions of a significant portion of our colleagues," senior QA tester Elise Willacker said in a statement to Kotaku. "We have filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge to call out Sega's direct dealing with members, and its breaching of the status quo by telling bargaining unit members that our jobs would be ending shortly."

  • The union was formed earlier this year after an overwhelming majority vote, and it covers a variety of departments including QA, localization, and marketing. The group's main goals are to fight for higher base pay that rises with inflation, better benefits such as healthcare, and balanced workloads after claiming that prior to its founding, nearly a third of Sega employees lacked "full-time status, paid time off, proper training, or even bereavement leave."

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