Unionized workers at Bethesda Game Studios have announced plans to protest the recent widespread layoffs affecting Microsoft's Xbox division. In an internal communication, union members stated, "The company wants us to accept this as a done deal and quietly disappear. We won't let that happen." This action follows an announcement by new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma detailing 3,200 job cuts across the company, with 1,600 immediate reductions and further layoffs planned before the end of Microsoft's fiscal year. Studios such as Activision, Mojang, Blizzard, and other Xbox Game Studios development teams have been affected.
Bethesda and ZeniMax have also experienced significant impacts. Over 240 Bethesda employees unionized in 2024 under the OneBGS banner. The union's mobilising committee has confirmed that a "Save Our Devs" rally will take place next Wednesday, July 15th, at ZeniMax offices in Rockville, Austin, Dallas, and Montreal. The protest aims to oppose the Xbox layoffs that have resulted in the elimination of over 440 positions across Bethesda Game Studios, ZeniMax Online Studios, id Software, ZeniMax Workers United, and ZeniMax corporate.
The union leadership claims that Microsoft and ZeniMax are attempting to reframe the 35 cuts at Bethesda as an "entrepreneurial change in the scope of business," shifting from a "studio-based business model to a franchise-based model" to avoid their legal obligation to bargain the decision. The union rejects this characterization, asserting that "Changing a title on a PowerPoint slide does not erase our legal right to a say in our working conditions."
Despite this, the union maintains that Microsoft is legally required to engage in "Effects Bargaining," which allows negotiation on how layoffs impact employees. The union intends to negotiate for preferential transfers of affected Bethesda workers to open roles within Xbox and Microsoft, demand stronger severance packages and extended healthcare benefits, and secure recall rights for laid-off members.
In solidarity, the union is encouraging members to participate in the rallies to demonstrate their unified stance and signal to management that "we mean business." This show of force aims to deter future actions of this nature. Reports from current and former employees indicate a significant drop in morale following the layoffs. The departure of key personnel is expected to have a "substantial and cascading effect" on the development of The Elder Scrolls 6. At id Software, the studio behind Doom and Quake, the layoffs have been described as a "bloodbath," with the studio reportedly reduced to "support studio size."
Amid these developments, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma is slated to co-lead the US Federal Reserve's Productivity and Jobs task force on employment.