Video game workers found their voices in the pandemic. Could unions be next?

Several hundred Activision Blizzard employees staged a walkout outside the gate at Activision Blizzard headquarters on July 28, 2021, in Irvine, California. — Los Angeles Times/TNS

With Christmas a few weeks away, Onah Rongstad had been working round-the-clock to prepare for the release of new content in Call Of Duty: Warzone, an entry in the bestselling first-person-shooter franchise.

The 26-year-old was a quality assurance tester for Raven Software, a Wisconsin video game studio owned by Santa Monica gaming giant Activision Blizzard. She and her teammates were responsible for ensuring everything in the game ran smoothly for players – every weapon, animation, character, map and event.