Changing the Game: Why Game Workers Are Unionizing. Pt. 1 | NYLA Talks

Gaming has become the biggest of entertainment industries. But its 120 million annual US dollar revenue comes at a cost. Burnouts, addictions and 100-hour work weeks became the norm among game developers.

So now this very young industry is considering a very old solution: game developers are creating workers unions. In this two part episode of NYLA podcast we are talking to people behind the movement - and why it should matter to all of us.

Our first interviewee is Austin Kelmore , who has more than 12 years of experience working as a software engineer and engineering lead at multiple well-known game development studios, including Electronic Arts and Warner Bros.

He is also the chair of Game Workers Unite UK - one of the first game workers unions established

At the time of the recording, Austin was employed at Ustwo Games and was working on an Apple Arcade title Assemble with Care. A month after the recording, Austin was dismissed from the studio, allegedly because of his ties to a game workers union. Ustwo Games now faces legal action from the Independant Workers Union of Great Britain.

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