Kotaku has an open letter to game developers with some perspective on the
game industry from the AFL-CIO, America's largest labor organization (thanks Neutronbeam).
Written by secretary-treasurer Liz Shuler, this is their first major public
statement about organizing game developers. This recognizes the long hours and
limited compensation that is the lot of a developer, and make the case for
unionization. Here's a bit:
We’ve heard the painful stories of those
willing to come forward, including one developer who visited the emergency room
three times before taking off from work. Developers at Rockstar Games recently
shared stories of crunch time that lasted for months and even years in order to
satisfy outrageous demands from management, delivering a game that banked their
bosses $725 million in its first three days.
This is a moment for change. It won’t come from CEOs. It won’t come from
corporate boards. And, it won’t come from any one person.
Change will happen when you gain leverage by joining together in a strong union.
And, it will happen when you use your collective voice to bargain for a fair
share of the wealth you create every day.
No matter where you work, bosses will only offer fair treatment when you stand
together and demand it. Fortunately, the groundwork is already being laid as
grassroots groups like Game Workers Unite embrace the power of solidarity and
prove that you don’t have to accept a broken, twisted status quo.
You have the power to demand a stake in your industry and a say in your economic
future. What’s more, you have millions of brothers and sisters across the
country standing with you.
Your fight is our fight, and we look forward to welcoming you into our union
family. Whether we’re mainlining caffeine in Santa Monica, clearing tables in
Chicago or mining coal in West Virginia, we deserve to collect nothing less than
the full value of our work.