Activision Blizzard HR Accused Of 'Shredding Documents Relating To Complaints'

A development in the Activision Blizzard anti-discrimination lawsuit now alleges that the company's HR staff shredded documents pertaining to the case.

The case, put forward by the state of California, has been extended after allegations of interference in the investigation, a claim that has been supported by the state's Department of Fair Employment and Housing, reports Axios. 

Regarding what has been added, California has included temporary workers alongside the female full-time employees it is representing with the lawsuit. Therefore, there has been a slight wording change, with 'employees' now being changed to 'workers'. 

The most controversial of the changes is that the suit is claiming Activision Blizzard has 'directly interfered' with the investigation by subjecting some employees to NDAs (non-disclosure agreements), as well as reportedly requiring that workers speak to the company before contacting the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, and the hiring of a law firm. 

One part of it says that "documents related to investigations and complaints were shredded by human resource personnel". However, Activision Blizzard has released a statement that says: "With regards to claims that we have destroyed information by shredding documents, those claims are not true. We took appropriate steps to preserve information relevant to the DFEH investigation."

In the original report, it was claimed: "Male employees proudly come into work hungover, play video games for long periods of time during work while delegating their responsibilities to female employees, engage in banter about their sexual encounters, talk openly about female bodies, and joke about rape."

The company was also accused of giving female workers "lower level roles", as well as denying gender-equal pay, and overlooking women for promotions "in favour of male counterparts who lacked the same experience or qualifications but who were friends with the male head of the unit."

The lawsuit continues.