The gaming publisher Activision Blizzard (WoW) is still grappling with the aftermath of a sexism lawsuit: The focus of the lawsuit and subsequent reports was repeatedly on the company’s Human Resources department. Now the head of this department, Jesse Meschuk, is leaving the company as further incidents come to light that report severe difficulties in his department.
What is known about Meschuk’s departure: Very little is known; it is only known that Meschuk has already left the company this week. Activision Blizzard made this announcement in connection with the resignation of Blizzard CEO J. Allen Brack.
Meschuk was the head of the Human Resources department and held the rank of “Senior Vice President of HR,” so he was very high up in the hierarchy.
It appears that Meschuk has also withdrawn publicly: His Twitter account and LinkedIn page have been deleted.
Human Resources department of Blizzard in focus of the lawsuit
What were the allegations against the Human Resources department in the lawsuit? In the lawsuit of a state agency in California, the Human Resources department was repeatedly mentioned negatively. The lawsuit followed a two-year investigation with Blizzard’s knowledge.
It was stated:
- Numerous complaints about discrimination, sexual harassment, or retaliation were filed with the Human Resources department, but these complaints remained without consequence.
- An internal investigation found that employees felt “a significant lack of trust” towards the Human Resources department, which was “not held in high regard.”
- The Human Resources department responded to complaints “dismissively” and did “not keep them confidential.”
“Broken Human Resources department”
This intensified the situation: After the filing of the lawsuit, further allegations surfaced in tweets and reports, which were not directly aimed at Meschuk but rather at the Human Resources department as a whole. It was repeatedly referred to as “broken.”
Employees spoke with the US site Axios and raised further allegations. It is said:
- the Human Resources department even protected individuals who behaved abusively from consequences.
- Those who complained were told: “This is not a fight you want to take on.”
“They behave like a brat”
Here are some illustrative cases: The site Axios quotes former Blizzard employee Nicki Broderick. Broderick recounts that she clashed with a manager who was considered untouchable:
- The manager once stood over her desk and did not let her leave or reach for her phone.
- When she complained, she was told: “That’s not harassment. He didn’t touch you.”
- After the incident, Broderick’s career was, as she says, severely limited: She was not assigned new projects and was not considered for a promotion for three years.
In other cases, the Human Resources department told her she was “acting like a brat” or that Broderick should “suck it up” and return to her desk.
Another employee says she was physically attacked by a colleague, but this was questioned by the Human Resources department. She was told that they were surprised she was not crying or more hysterical.
Blizzard did not protect her but instead suggested she work from home or switch departments. When she complained again to the Human Resources department, she was told: “He really feels sorry and truly wants you to work at Blizzard. And he says you were really nice to him.”
“As if you’re just talking into the void”
Moreover, the Human Resources department was said to be poor at documenting discussions and showed no transparency. One employee stated it felt like you were just talking into the void. Furthermore, every report made to the Human Resources department was a double-edged sword. One employee said:
“They told everyone what you reported to them. Nothing said to the Human Resources department remained confidential.”
Why was the Human Resources department so inadequate? According to sources from Axios, it was a problem that at Activision Blizzard, the Human Resources department was apparently understaffed and that personnel there changed constantly. There was little consistency, resulting in a lack of trust in individual points of contact.
At Blizzard, the signs are pointing towards change. The sexism lawsuit has already significantly altered the personnel direction of the WoW developer:
These are the two new heads of Blizzard – what they have done so far
