Nintendo Accused Of Union Busting In New Lawsuit

As unionization efforts gain momentum among workers for mega-corporations like Starbucks and Amazon, attention has recently turned toward Nintendo, which is now embroiled with a lawsuit accusing the company of using union-busting tactics to prevent organizing among its employees.

The National Labor Relations Board reported that the company and its staffing company Aston Carter are accused of utilizing various methods to intimidate or coerce staffers against unionizing. The anonymous accuser's suit alleges the company engaged in "Concerted Activities (Retaliation, Discharge, Discipline)," "Coercive Actions (Surveillance, etc.)," "Coercive Statements (Threats, Promises of Benefits, etc.)" and "Discharge (Including Layoff and Refusal to Hire (not salting))."

Polygon was able to receive a redacted version of the unnamed staffer's lawsuit from The National Labor Relations Board. The lawsuit comes from a former employee who alleges they were fired because they "joined or supported a labor organization," implying the firing was done "in order to discourage union activities and/or membership."

Nintendo joins a long line of gaming companies caught in a wave of unionization efforts across the industry. Activision Blizzard is currently litigating a unionization effort from the QA team at its subsidiary, Raven Software. Vodeo Games recently became the first gaming company in America to unionize, and Voltage Entertainment writers recently won the right to unionize after a 21-day strike.

If Nintendo, who has yet to comment on the lawsuit, is bothered by the allegations, they surely aren't showing it publicly. Many found it strange that while Nintendo was hit with a grave lawsuit that could have potentially major consequences for its reputation, the company was blissfully tweeting pictures of Kirby.

“Nintendo’s probably gonna put out a HUGE direct to distract from this controversy”

Nintendo: pic.twitter.com/MLPAnaXugU

— Elliot Duby (@elliotduby) April 19, 2022