TSM FTX CEO Andy Dinh fostered toxic work environment, new report claims
by Adam Fitch
·
Updated
A new report from The Washington Post details the work environment at TSM FTX, citing anonymous sources that used to work at the North American esports organization.
The allegations: The new report is a result of speaking with "over a dozen" current and former employees of TSM FTX CEO Andy Dinh.
- The Post's sources claim that Dinh fired the org's new Head of Human Resources as he "asked a question that Andy didn't like."
- The report claims there have been numerous instances of employees being "called out" and "publicly shamed" by Dinh in calls and work chats.
- "Nobody wanted to be in a one-on-one meeting with Andy because you had no witnesses," Anthony Barnes, a former Senior Program Manager at Blitz (owned by the same parent company as TSM FTX), told The Post.
- Several former workers also believe they were misclassified during their time at TSM FTX, working as contractors instead of employees. Misclassifying employees as contractors in California could go against local employment laws.
- The report states a specific case regarding the contractor situation where one contractor signed to join the org's content team, working around the clock while receiving pay that was more than $5,000 below the legal annual minimum for a contractor in the state. Attempts to secure full-time employment were allegedly futile.
Previous allegations: There has already been an investigation into Dinh's behavior.
- It was reported in January 2022 that Riot Games was investigating TSM FTX over allegations of bullying through a third-party firm.
- More specifically, a former employee accused Dinh of "mental abuse" and former TSM FTX competitor Yiliang "Doubelift" Peng publicly described him as being "like a bully who gets away with being a bad person because he's powerful."
- There were mentions of the TSM FTX CEO being verbally abusive and demeaning in the WIRED report, with sources claiming that he would yell at employees in front of their colleagues as an "exhibition." A former employee recalled a time when Dinh allegedly said he wanted to "make an example" out of one person he was berating.