Activision Blizzard abuse scandal: CEO and HR boss have left the company

The lawsuit against Activision Blizzard for massive sexual harassment has had first consequences. On Tuesday, Blizzard CEO J. Allen Brack announced his immediate departure from the company. Jen Oneal and Mike Ybarra are taking over his position. This marks the first time in Blizzard's history that a woman is leading the company. Brack is charged with complicity in the abuse allegations in the indictment, which stems from a two-year investigation by the state of California.

With Jesse Meschuk, the scandal seems to have cost another leading figure his job. Meschuk was head of the global HR department until recently. Blizzard only disclosed that «Jesse Meschuk is no longer with the company». The lawsuit alleged that Meschuk was complicit in the harassment of employees. Employees were reportedly discouraged from reaching out, as the HR department was said to be close to the defendants.

On Tuesday, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said in an earnings call that culprits will be held accountable and managers who obstruct the investigation will be fired. Kotick continued to say: «There is no place anywhere at our company for discrimination, harassment, or unequal treatment of any kind. We will be the company that sets the example for this in our industry.» Activision Blizzard's U-turn from their initial statements doesn’t seem to come by chance, as their shares have lost around 15 percent in value compared with the previous month.

Criticism against torture defence lawyer

Nevertheless, employees at Blizzard aren’t impressed by the measures taken so far. Even before last week's strike, or better walkout, they were calling for the end of the forced arbitration clause, better application and promotion processes, transparent wages, and a diversity, equity and inclusion task force.

Kotick's promise to have the company audited by the law firm WilmerHale is also seen as a mockery. Activision Blizzard has previously worked with WilmerHale when it came to challenging the creation of new diversified recruiting policies.

WilmerHale is said to have close ties to Frances Townsend, another controversial executive at Activision Blizzard. In an internal e-mail to staff, Townsend called the allegations untrue. Over 2,600 employees have since signed a letter condemning Townsend's response.
She became known as a State Security and Counterterrorism official under George Bush Jr. where she defended the CIA's torture measures. The tense situation didn't stop her from tweeting that whistleblowers were a problem. Now she’s systematically blocking everyone who criticised her for this – including not only journalists, but also current as well as former Activision Blizzard employees.

Ubisoft has also been drawn into the maelstrom of the latest wave of abuse. More than a thousand employees recently signed an open letter to the company's leadership team, calling for new measures to be taken regarding allegations of abuse in their workplace. Contrary to public statements by Ubisoft, hardly anything has changed behind the scenes, according to the initiators. They claim that the accused people are still protected and even promoted. The open letter was also published in solidarity with the situation at Activision Blizzard to highlight how widespread the problem is and how quickly companies try to put a lid on things.