What's next for the unions fighting Xbox layoffs?

Hey there. This is coming a while later than I'd originally intended, but in addition to some hectic personal life stuff, I've been trying to gather as much input as possible amidst the chaos.

While I initially covered the wave of recent layoffs at Xbox and the immediate actions being taken by unions in response, I've also spent a few weeks talking with various current and former Xbox employees, including some union members deeply engaged in the fight against these layoffs.

Unfortunately, it's increasingly clear that no one actually knows what is going on over at Xbox. But the struggle continues.

There are still some other things I'm looking into (especially as the cuts aren't actually done) but for now, a notice on the current state of things.

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Addressing the rat in Tamriel

On Tuesday, August 11, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma visited Bethesda Game Studios headquarters in Rockville, Maryland to see a build of The Elder Scrolls 6. Sharma had some vaguely praiseworthy comments for what she saw, saying that "The scale and grandeur are incredible. The story is even greater."

Sharma did not, however, have any comments on something else happening on the grounds: A giant inflatable rat and dozens of red flags planted nearby, set up by former employees that were laid off in July. Each flag represented one worker cut from ZeniMax so far this year.

It's the latest in a series of actions that unionized Xbox employees with the Communication Workers of America (CWA) are taking in an effort to get Xbox management to meet demands.

Morgan Goin, senior encounter designer at ZeniMax Online Studios, worked there for about two years on The Elder Scrolls Online. Before that, she worked at Arkane Austin, which was dissolved in 2024. As one of many workers cut in July's mass layoff, she's adamant about continuing to fight for her coworkers as union negotiations continue.

Keeping these teams together is important, not just for the sake of people's jobs, but also ensuring they can do the best possible work for the players of their games.

"These are the people who actually have their hands in the machine making the games that Microsoft is now attempting to lay off, which will not only slow down the pace of production of the type of content that we're making," says Goin, pointing to how many teams that have been working in AAA video game development for a long time are increasingly specialized.

"We rely on each other and just talking with each other constantly to get help, to work together on things, to figure out 'Why is that thing linking up with that guy's hand in that particular way? I need to go talk to the animator.'" Goin adds. "[Microsoft] have removed the existing pipelines for these people to do their best work. We have our internal wikis, but a lot of things are institutional knowledge that live in people's heads."

Page Branson, a senior QA tester for ZeniMax Online Studios, is another employee Xbox is attempting to cut. For her, she wishes Xbox management actually understood and appreciated the teams it has.

"They always say Microsoft runs on trust. But man, we don't feel that right now when it comes to actually trusting their employees and knowing what their employees do and how crucial they all are to making everything work," Branson says.

One thing is absolutely clear: No one at Xbox that I've talked to — current employees and former workers alike — believes for a moment that these cuts had anything to do with reducing the so-called 14 layers of management outlined by Sharma.

"I want more people to really understand that that's just a lie. It's not like an obfuscation. It's not them fussing with the numbers to prove something. It's just a flat out lie," says Branson. "Up and down the company, the people that actually make things were let go, not the people above them. They're still fine. They still have jobs."

So, what's next?

Right now, there is a lot of waiting, as the unions will continue to negotiate with Microsoft over the exact impact of these cuts. It's still extremely early, but there are a few things that have been outlined in the union's goals.

First, the teams are trying to prove many of these layoffs were completely unneeded, and there are hopes restore some jobs. Failing that, the union also argues that Microsoft has a responsibility to offer impacted workers jobs at other studios that have open positions.

So far, Microsoft has been extremely resistant to transferring laid off employees to other studios with open roles, but this is a line item the union will continue to push.

Once again, there are also some ways that fans of these games and franchises can help show support. Goin specifically calls out appreciating the in-game march that players of The Elder Scrolls Online organized.

"We saw the news about the player march in-game, and I would like everybody to know that we all cried and we were all very, very moved for people organizing that. So thank you," she says.

Another set of rallies in protest of the layoffs are now set for Tuesday, August 18, taking place at various studios owned by Xbox, including id Software in Richardson, Texas, as well as Blizzard Entertainment's Irvine campus. You can find the full list of times and places here, and I highly encourage you to attend if any of the locations are feasible.

If traveling to one of these spots isn't viable, you can still show support by tuning into the Unionized Videogame Workers-CWA Twitch channel on August 18 at 11:30 a.m. ET.

The prior set of rallies was a success, and many employees noticed Microsoft becoming more willing to find time to negotiate immediately after the rallies' conclusion.

"That has already had an impact. We went from having only one confirmed bargaining day to six. You all did that," Goin says.

As before, the unions are also continuing to request that Xbox players upvote this suggestion on the official Xbox Player Voice feedback portal. Sources have told me all the highly-ranked suggestions here do in fact have significant weight, and the more people there are firmly demanding an end to this cycle of layoffs, the more pressure will be on the highest levels of management.

Outside of that, union members are simply requesting players stay informed, following along with the official social media accounts. If other actions are being taken, it'll be announced quite clearly.

Assorted news

There's still a lot of bad news out there, but also some stuff I'm eagerly adding to my calendar.

• Netflix is shuttering two studios: Oxenfree and Afterparty developer Night School Studio, which it acquired back in 2021, as well as Moonloot, an internally-created team that had not yet shipped a title. Night School Studio had just released a new horror game, Unhinged, back in June.
• Lords of the End Times, the highly-anticipated next expansion for Creative Assembly's Total War: Warhammer 3, is finally set to launch on Sept. 24, 2026. Addressing why its been pushed slightly past its original summer launch window, Creative Assembly notes the delay was needed to ensure it could be as crammed full as possible. This is one I'll be spending a lot of time with when it arrives.
• Sam Barlow and Half-Mermaid Productions' next game, formerly known as Project C, has been officially announced as Precognition. The game is set to launch in early 2028, and revolves around a woman named Diana examining "kaleidoscopic possibilities" in the future in order to change events. Precognition is being developed in partnership with director Brandon Cronenberg.