Activision Blizzard’s woes didn’t end with the acquisition by Microsoft, and the company is now facing a new lawsuit alleging sexual harassment and discrimination. Attorney Lisa Bloom filed a lawsuit Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of a current employee known as “Jane Doe,” a hypothetical title for a female client in legal proceedings, according to Bloomberg Law.
Over the years, Activision Blizzard’s open ‘fraternity’ environment has fostered rampant sexism, harassment and discrimination, with 700 whistleblower incidents overseen by CEO Robert Kotick,” the complaint reads.
Doe, who joined the company in 2017 as a senior administrative assistant in the IT department, said she was often forced to drink alcohol and participate in vulgar games. She also said female employees were often sexually commented and rubbed off by male colleagues when they participated in a game of “Cube Crawls” (crawling with cubes on their backs and not letting the cubes fall) in the office after drinking.
Doe said her boss interpreted her complaints about alcoholism and sexual assault as “the leadership treated her well and tried to befriend her”. She also claims to have been told not to express her concerns as it could be damaging to the company’s reputation.
After multiple failed attempts to jump to a new role in another department, Doe said she ended up being offered a lower-status, lower-paying position after complaining directly to former Blizzard president J. Allen Black.
Last August, just weeks after Activision Blizzard was sued by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the former head of the company left the company. The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing has accused Activision Blizzard of failing to address sexual harassment and discrimination against female employees.
Doe also said her application for the November 2021 administrative assistant position was rejected because she spoke at a news conference about her experience with the company. Currently, Doe is seeking court orders, including the introduction of a rotating personnel department to deal with conflicts of interest, and the firing of Activision Blizzard CEO Kotick.