Bethesda Union Members to Strike This Week

In response to the recent XBOX layoffs.

Last week, XBOX announced that it would be laying off 3,200 workers. Multiple studios were impacted, with some even being entirely divested from the company. Among the developers impacted was Bethesda, whose unionized workers at OneBGS, aren't taking the layoffs sitting down. The union announced that it will be going on strike this coming Wednesday, July 15, 2026.

The strikes will be held at multiple studio locations, including Montreal, Rockville, Austin, and Texas. According to a union rep, "Because we organised and certified our unions, we have hard-won legal rights and protections that non-unionised studios simply do not have." The rep goes on to say that "The company wants us to accept this as a done deal and quietly disappear. We won't let that happen. Our next steps are to mobilise. We need every single member visible and unified."

OneBGS is arguing that XBOX's efforts to "studio-based business model to a franchise-based model" is nothing more than an effort "to dodge their legal obligation to bargain" with the union. The statement concludes by saying "We are going to be demanding preferential transfers to force Microsoft to place affected BGS workers into open roles across Xbox and Microsoft first, stronger severance and extended healthcare to ensure no one is financially abandoned, as well as recall rights to ensure our laid-off members are the first ones hired back when BGS expands."

As we learn more, we'll continue to update.

Source: GamesIndustry.biz