Activision Blizzard has rejected a shareholder proposal that would increase diversity in the applicant pool because it would hinder their ability to hire talented individuals and be redundant.
Vice had previously reported on January 27 that the video game holding company had been rejected by the US Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) in January 2021. This proposal was intended for both Activision Blizzard and Electronic Arts (EA); both companies of which the AFL-CIO is a shareholder.
The reported policy proposal was sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), proposing to enact policies mandating qualified women and people of color in the initial pool of candidates for vacancies. This was compared to the NFL’s Rooney Rule, added in 2003.
The AFL-CIO claimed that the policy would improve diversity in the companies, which in turn would improve the company’s long-term performance.
“[The policy will improve] diversity of the workforce by requiring, but not limited to, the initial pool of candidates from which new employees are hired by the company to include qualified women and candidates from minorities. “
“The purpose of the requested Divers Candidate Search Policy is to ensure that the company’s recruitment pools for external recruiting are sufficiently diverse. A diverse workforce at all levels of a company can improve long-term business performance. “
The proposal letters were obtained by Vice’s Motherboard, along with a response from Activision Blizzard attorneys. They stated that they already had such a proposal for director and CEO appointment positions, and implementing this company-wide would hamper their ability to competitively hire talented people.
They further argued that the proposal would violate SEC guidelines, as it significantly intends “Micromanage” Activision Blizzard.
While the company has implemented a Rooney Rule policy as intended [for director and CEO nominees], implementing a policy that would extend such an approach to all recruiting decisions amounts to an unworkable impairment of the company’s ability to run its business and compete for talent in a highly competitive, rapidly changing market. “
[…] “The Proposal leaves no room for the management of the Company or the Board of Directors to exercise discretion in how new hiring decisions are structured.”
Speaking to Vice, an Activision Blizzard spokesperson stated that despite this response, they appreciated the diversity within the company. In addition, they already had a series of initiatives and scholarship programs for exactly that purpose.
“Our talent is the lifeblood of Activision Blizzard. We value the diversity of the Activision Blizzard community and understand that our employees and players come from a wide variety of backgrounds. To deliver epic and engaging entertainment to a diverse, growing global audience, our workforce must reflect these communities. “
“We have launched a range of new programs such as our scholarship programs with the United Negro College Fund and the Equal Justice Initiative,” the spokesman continued. “These high school scholarships help develop the best and brightest future diverse talent by offering mentors and internships designed to ensure earlier success in their careers.”
An EA spokesperson told Vice this is true “In regular discussions with our shareholders and we appreciate the feedback we receive. In accordance with our standard operating procedures, EA’s Board of Directors will consider the shareholder proposal. The Board is committed to upholding recruitment practices that promote inclusion and diversity at EA. “
Brandon Rees, the director of investments at the AFL-CIO, explained to Vice that shareholders will typically submit a proposal and discuss the matter with the company. The proposal can be withdrawn if the company agrees to take action to resolve what the proposal intends to implement. If it is rejected, the shareholders will then vote to implement the proposal.
On January 28, Daniel Alegre, President of Activision Blizzard, posted a public statement on the Activision Blizzard website entitled “Building an equitable, inclusive and diverse Activison Blizzard community.”
In it, Alegre explained that he didn’t join the company alone “Help connect people around the world through epic games;” but was inspired by Bobby Kotick’s CEO “Commitment to diversity within our global teams, and the ability to continue to build a culture of inclusivity.”
Focusing on media coverage of the AFL-CIO’s proposal, Alegre wanted to provide clarity and context, explaining how Activision Blizzard is already pursuing a workforce with diversity in mind.
“In our current recruiting practices across the company and for each position, we emphasize and create diverse candidate lists; Our practices naturally allow hiring managers to ensure diversity within each country in which we operate. We don’t need the AFL-CIO proposal to confirm what we’re already doing – encourage every hiring manager to consider different candidates for each position. We believe in our existing recruiting practices, which encourage every hiring manager to find different candidates for each position. We also make sure that every candidate – regardless of background, ethnicity, gender, race and sexual orientation – is eligible for any open role. We have and will continue to focus on clear goals and measurable criteria for diversity within our workforce and are proud of our success. We are unequivocally committed to increasing diversity at all levels in Activision Blizzard worldwide.
I want to reiterate that diversity, fairness and inclusion will remain at the heart of our company, culture and employee experience. Our commitment begins in the sourcing and recruiting process and is repeated during onboarding and through alumni status. Our code of conduct is recognized every year by all employees – at every level. New employees are required to complete our Way2Play training and our Equality & Diversity training to ensure that employees understand their responsibility.
In fact, today we were recognized by the Human Rights Campaign for the third year in a row with a perfect score on the Corporate Equality Index for LGBTQ inclusive workplace policies and practices, an achievement worth celebrating.
Our games change stereotypes and bring people together regardless of race, religion or cultural values. But we can only achieve this if our own talent truly represents the diversity of our nearly 400 million players around the world. We know that all businesses can do more to encourage diversity, inclusion and fairness, but I am proud of our commitment to constant improvement and the company-wide commitment we all have to promote a diverse and fair workplace . I am here because of this commitment, which is unshakable. “