The Communications Workers of America (CWA) issued a statement on the latest round of layoffs at Microsoft, which recently laid off another 650 employees. The CWA doesn't represent anyone who was laid off in recent layoffs, but it still represents employees within Microsoft, such as Blizzard's internal World of Warcraft developers. They said they were disappointed to see more layoffs at "one of the largest and most profitable companies in the world."
Samuel Cooper, senior producer of World of Warcraft and WoWGG-CWA member, said in a statement: "Every employee should be able to have a voice while on the job and have a say in the impact of layoffs. While we hope that companies like Microsoft, which made $88 billion in profits last year, can achieve 'long-term success' without destroying the livelihoods of 650 colleagues, ruthless layoffs like this have become all too common."
“We stand with everyone who is out of work today and encourage everyone working in video games to join us and form a union so we can protect each other.”
While unions can't completely prevent layoffs, the CWA says they do provide assistance to employees in terms of the overall way they're handled. The union added that it remains "committed to supporting workers at Microsoft and throughout the technology and video game industries seeking to unionize and improve their workplaces."