In a story reminiscent of the infamous "EA Spouse" outburst
in 2004, a group of wives of developers from Rockstar San Diego has posted a lengthy open letter under the pseudonym "Rockstar Spouse" to
Gamasutra decrying the conditions under which their mates work. The issues listed by Rockstar Spouse seem quite familiar from the EA Spouse incident, as they cite quality of life concerns relating to long working hours and high degrees of working stress, also complaining of benefit cuts, salaries not keeping pace with inflation, and abusive management. There is also an extensive discussion of the age-old problem of "crunch time" never going away, saying: "The managers at Rockstar San Diego continue in their dishonesty, pushing their employees to the brink promising temporariness fully equipped with the knowledge of another deadline just around the corner. The reigns whip again, and it becomes mandatory to work close to twelve hours a day including Saturdays, regardless if an employee has finished all his duties prior." They conclude threatening legal action if their complaints aren't redressed:
Conclusively, if these working conditions stay unchanged in the upcoming weeks, preparation will be made to take legal action against Rockstar San Diego. This is the course that naturally presents itself, as either these conditions were manufactured from unawareness and actions to improve conditions will prove such innocence. Or if no action is seen after this letter, it clear that other aspects are the cause of the deteriorated conditions of Rockstar San Diego employees and must be further addressed. Rest assure, all that is desired is compensation for health, mental, financial, and damages done to families of employees.
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| 29. |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Jan 9, 2010, 11:03 |
DG |
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I've chatted with two people (one a QA temp and another an employee in game design) working at Rockstar North, separate people on separate occasions. This was during GTA IV crunch time.
Both were putting a LOT of hours in. Lots - 12hr a day 6 days a week I believe. This suited the temp's situation; the employee was clearly overworked but fully accepted that this is the industry, and mentioned that he was getting a long holiday (I think it was 4 weeks, on top of regular holiday) as part of a bonus when they gold. Something like that anyway, this was over a year ago and both conversations were in pubs).
Both seemed satisfied with the pay. The QA said his hourly pay which I forget but at the time I thought very good for temp position that doesn't require qualifications - not a lot of money but well above the minimum wage which they certainly could have gotten away with. The employee was clearly happy with his pay, and said that although it was hard work he enjoyed working there. The temp wasn't expecting to be taken on afterwards, but was going to apply anyway.
While this is a year ago, and not San Diego, this letter really doesn't fit with my conversations. |
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Date |
Subject |
Author |
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1. |
Jan 8, 21:45 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Kxmode |
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15. |
Jan 9, 00:07 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Thenetcase |
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41. |
Jan 13, 09:04 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
xXBatmanXx |
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2. |
Jan 8, 21:45 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Zavy |
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3. |
Jan 8, 21:54 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Zanthar |
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5. |
Jan 8, 22:01 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
eRe4s3r |
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6. |
Jan 8, 22:16 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
LittleMe |
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4. |
Jan 8, 21:58 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Techie714 © |
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7. |
Jan 8, 22:29 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Tumbler |
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8. |
Jan 8, 22:46 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Zanthar |
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30. |
Jan 9, 11:08 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Mashiki Amiketo |
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31. |
Jan 9, 11:35 |
Re: Game Reviews |
BobBob |
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9. |
Jan 8, 23:02 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Hump |
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10. |
Jan 8, 23:25 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Overon |
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11. |
Jan 8, 23:41 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Tanto Edge |
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12. |
Jan 8, 23:42 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Sty |
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13. |
Jan 8, 23:57 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
7.62WorldOrder |
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14. |
Jan 9, 00:00 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Icewind |
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19. |
Jan 9, 01:27 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
ASJD |
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33. |
Jan 9, 12:40 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Sty |
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34. |
Jan 9, 13:12 |
removed |
PHJF |
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35. |
Jan 9, 13:29 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Sty |
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43. |
Jan 13, 22:16 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Sepharo |
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32. |
Jan 9, 11:48 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Muscular Beaver |
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23. |
Jan 9, 02:14 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
eRe4s3r |
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16. |
Jan 9, 00:11 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
theyarecomingforyou |
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17. |
Jan 9, 00:16 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
vermin |
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18. |
Jan 9, 01:03 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Acleacius |
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38. |
Jan 10, 03:57 |
Re: Game Reviews |
BobBob |
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20. |
Jan 9, 01:51 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
dubfanatic |
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21. |
Jan 9, 01:56 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
space captain |
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22. |
Jan 9, 01:57 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Veterator |
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24. |
Jan 9, 06:28 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Sempai |
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25. |
Jan 9, 07:32 |
Re: Game Reviews |
BobBob |
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26. |
Jan 9, 08:32 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Innocent |
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27. |
Jan 9, 09:00 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Reitsuki |
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29. |
Jan 9, 11:03 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
DG |
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28. |
Jan 9, 10:52 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Tom |
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36. |
Jan 9, 16:54 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
cogInDaMachine |
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37. |
Jan 9, 18:59 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
Tumbler |
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39. |
Jan 12, 00:30 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
LightAssassin |
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40. |
Jan 13, 08:59 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
xXBatmanXx |
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42. |
Jan 13, 09:09 |
Re: Rockstar San Diego Revolt |
xXBatmanXx |
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