A trio of IGN workers were abruptly laid off earlier this month. Producer Francesca Rivera, video producer Jesse Gill, and senior editor Joshua Yehl were all members of the games website’s recently formed IGN Creators Guild.
The union alleges that on March 7, management cut those three positions without any clear reason to do so. The site is in “no economic distress,” and these reductions were made without prior consultation.
Management reportedly claimed these layoffs were already set in stone prior to the union’s recognition. Even so, the Guild argued this was a “massive breach of trust between union employees and management.”
“To say I’m devastated after being laid off from my dream job at IGN after 10 years is an understatement,” wrote Yehl. “A decade of pouring my heart & soul into my work, it’s all over in a surprise company reorg.”
Rivera added that she was “heartbroken by this decision. But even more so, [I] am disappointed by the way this has been handled.”
“Had just shy of 5 years on, nothing but positive reviews,” said Gill. “The union presented a list of other options, to no avail.”
The IGN Creators Guild wants a real conversation with management
The union accused management of “legal acrobatics,” noting that IGN has seven open positions the three could’ve easily been slotted into. Even beyond that, there were “plenty” of other options leadership could’ve used.
“The layoff was a choice, not a need,” it stated. “The experience of our impacted members is expertise we can’t afford to lose, and a huge blow to the teams who relied on them across departments.”
The Creators Guild called on the community to “insist” IGN management sit down with them in good faith bargaining. At the same time, it’s filed Unfair Labor Practice charges and is hoping to give Rivera, Gill, and Yehl severance.