Hundreds of Bethesda employees strike over remote work and outsourcing policies

Hundreds of Bethesda employees are striking today over remote working and outsourcing concerns they claim Microsoft has failed to address.

Workers in Maryland and Texas are holding a one-day strike after filing an unfair labor complaint against parent company ZeniMax in October, Inverse reports.

They represent the second largest video games union in the US, which was formed in January 2023 and includes over 300 quality assurance workers.

The strike is designed to encourage Microsoft to meet the union at the bargaining table to address their concerns.

According to the union, ZeniMax workers are currently required to go to the office twice a week, but it claims many are being denied their remote work requests.

Additionally, it’s seeking to limit the percentage of quality assurance testers ZeniMax outsources in comparison to the number of full-time workers present in its bargaining unit.

Following its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard last year, Xbox cut more than 2,500 jobs and closed four Bethesda game development studios.

“The Xbox business has never been more healthy,” Microsoft gaming CEO Phil Spencer told Bloomberg in an interview published today.

He also said Xbox is still open to more acquisitions, that it’s not ruling out bringing any first-party games to PS5 or Switch, and that Xbox is building a handheld.