Sega of America accused of threatening workers with mass layoffs over unionisation
Union alleges publisher planned to "phase out" temporary workers in response to bargaining talks
Sega of America has been accused of attempting to lay off staff in response to their bargaining efforts.
The Communications Workers of America (CWA) filed an unfair labour practice on behalf of the Allied Employees Guild Improving Sega (AEGIS) after Sega reportedly proposed a plan to "phase out" temporary workers by February 2024 and outsource roles to Europe and Japan.
In a statement shared with GamesIndustry.biz, QA tester temp and AEGIS member Elise Willacker said this would affect roughly 80 people in the union's bargaining unit.
"My coworkers on the bargaining committee were not given any notice that this proposal would be announced to the rest of the company mere hours after the meeting, and before anyone had a chance to review or formulate a response," said Willacker.
"It's disheartening to see such actions from Sega, as it unmistakably demonstrates bad faith bargaining and a refusal to recognise the valuable contributions of a significant portion of our colleagues."
She added: "Sega will not be allowed to get away with this unlawful behaviour. We call on the company to make all temporary employees permanent and return to the bargaining table in good faith. There is no other just alternative."
GamesIndustry.biz has reached out to Sega for comment.
Earlier this year, Sega of America employees voted yes to forming a union consisting of over 200 staff from live service, marketing, and product development departments.