Former Nintendo employee accuses companies of firing her for union activities
A former Nintendo of America employee has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), accusing Nintendo of resigning from his job because of his involvement in a labor union.
As first reported by Axios, the specific fee is levied against both Nintendo of America and recruitment firm Aston Carter, which hires contractors for various administrative and customer support roles at Nintendo. It is alleged that the employee was fired from his position because of activities related to unionization – either joining or supporting a union and participating in other activities such as discussing wages and conditions of employment. The complaint also alleges that Nintendo was “involved in monitoring” union activities.
The NLRB protects employees from retaliation or termination for participating in union activities or otherwise organizing. Now that the complaint has been filed, the next step for the NLRB is to investigate the termination to determine if it was allegedly illegal and union organizing.
In a statement shared with Polygon, Nintendo confirmed that the employee in question was fired, but claims it was not due to the organization:
“We are aware of the lawsuit filed with the National Labor Relations Board by a contractor who was previously terminated for disclosure of confidential information and for no other reason,” the statement said. “Nintendo is not aware of any attempts at unionization or related activity and intends to cooperate with the investigation being conducted by the NLRB.
“Nintendo is fully committed to providing a welcoming and supportive work environment for all of our employees and contractors. We take employment issues very seriously.”
The NLRB has been increasingly involved in the activities of video game companies of late as organizational efforts continue to emerge across the industry. Just today, Apple workers in Georgia petitioned the NLRB to form a union. And last year, Activision Blizzard workers filed a complaint with the NLRB accusing their employers of union busting and intimidation, and subsidiary Raven Software eventually formed its own union. Their organizing efforts came after a series of lawsuits and allegations against the company dating back to July, beginning with a California lawsuit accusing the company of a frat boy culture, sexual harassment, unequal pay and more.
Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.
https://www.ign.com/articles/former-nintendo-employee-accuses-firing-unionization Former Nintendo employee accuses companies of firing her for union activities
