Worker Accused Nintendo of Violating the National Labor Relations Act

On April 15, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) received a complaint from an unnamed employee against Nintendo and the contracting firm Aston Carter.

According to Polygon, the public did not have direct access to the details included in these documents - only the public docket. The lawsuit was filed Monday, April 18. The publication cited Axios as the first to report the news.

The public docket said that Nintendo and Aston Carter allegedly engaged in the following:

• "8(a)(1) Coercive Actions (Surveillance, etc)"

• "8(a)(1) Coercive Statements (Threats, Promises of Benefits, etc.)"

• "8(a)(3) Discharge (Including Layoff and Refusal to Hire (not salting))"

• "8(a)(1) Concerted Activities (Retaliation, Discharge, Discipline)"

According to analysts who read between the lines, as per the report of Geekwire, this could indicate that the complainant was seeking to organize their coworkers.

Aston Carter is a staffing agency that has previously listed administrative and customer support positions at the games company, as per Kotaku.

Polygon mentioned that Nintendo, like other video game firms, uses contract workers for certain development positions.

This Is Not the First Time That Employees of Game Companies Have Filed a Labor Complaint

Geekwire mentioned that for at least the last four years, attempts for game worker unionization have been quietly gaining traction.

As reported this month, almost 1,100 of the temporary and contingent QA positions of Activision Publishing and Blizzard Entertainment, both subsidiaries of parent company Activision Blizzard, in the U.S. will be converted to full-time positions. This correlates with an increase in the minimum hourly wage for QA roles to $20 per hour.

"It was said that the conversion of 1,100 QA to full-time employees comes on the heels of growing unionization across Activision Blizzard which began with the ABetterABK Workers Alliance, a workers' collective that has coordinated different walkouts across Activision Blizzard in support of better working conditions. Blizzard's first union was formed by Raven QA staff earlier this year."

Worker Union Is Also Taking Place at Big Companies Such as Apple and Amazon

As previously reported, employees at Apple's Grand Central Station location in New York recently announced their intention to organize a union.

"The workers are not happy with how New York City's cost of living has increased yet their wages remained the same. They also pointed out how Apple has grown in wealth without their workers benefitting much."

All workers at the Grand Central store should be paid a minimum of $30 per hour, according to the group.

Aside from a $30 minimum hourly wage, the group demanded more vacation time and information on stricter safety regulations.

It will be the first time Apple employees have organized a union if the organizers succeed.

Over 150 Starbucks workers have petitioned the NLRB to hold union elections after workers at 17 Starbucks stores have voted to unionize.

Employees at Amazon in New York City also decided to form the company's first union earlier this month.