Beware of BioWare: 2008's EA Spouse or internet anger?
by Xav de Matos 
{ Feb 20th 2008 at 11:45AM }
According to a post from the infamous industry insider Surfer Girl, BioWare has been called out as one of the worst employers in the gaming world. Gamewatch.org poster Milez5858 warned forum readers of the horrors of working for the Canadian company, "EA gets a lot of the grief for their employment history. For anyone considering work at Bioware, beware of them as well." Milez5858 later added, "They love out of country workers because they don't understand the Canadaian [sic] labour laws. They continually fire people with out warning. This is illegal in Canada."
So is Milez5858 a jaded employee of the recently acquired Canadian developer? No. In fact he/she claims to be a friend of former employees angered for being dismissed for refusing to work more than 40 hours a week. Soon after lighting the fire from under BioWare on January 25, Milez5858 removed his comments on Gamewatch.org's message boards regarding the company and its practices on February 13 leaving only the disconcerting words, "big scarey [sic] company vs. li'l ol' me." Who knows the truth in this situation, but let's look at the facts.In Alberta a work week is calculated to 8 hours a day and 44 hours a week. Overtime only begins after a full work week, in this case 44 hours. According the labor laws, employees are entitled to days off based on the days and hours worked but this rule does not apply to all industries. Exceptions include those in the film and video production industry as well as those employed in a confidential capacity which are both arguable as gaming industry positions. Also, according to Alberta law, employees do not have the legal right to refuse overtime hours.
While it's possible a few members of BioWare suffered the Mass Effect deadline crunch and didn't make it out alive (with their jobs, that is) we're going to give the benefit of the doubt to BioWare. We're talking about a company that has been awarded one of the Top 35 Employers in Alberta (Top 100 in Canada) in 2008, 2006, 2005 and 2004 by MediaCorp Canada Inc. as well as ranked one of the 10 Best Companies to Work for by The Financial Post in their last annual poll. We're not saying that proves anything but a few cached forum posts wouldn't hold up in court either.
[Via Surfer Girl Reviews Star Wars]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ninzono @ Feb 20th 2008 12:44PM
Perhaps this is the reason most EA games are bad?
You treat me like crap and i'll make your game crap! :D
killploki @ Feb 20th 2008 11:58AM
if thats what it takes to get games like mass effect done then im all for it.
Bushman311 @ Feb 20th 2008 12:07PM
Milez sounds like a dumbass.
jefffff @ Feb 20th 2008 12:09PM
Yeah and keep kicking those little asian girls that make my sneakers. If thats what it takes to gimme my kicks.
Jerk.
killploki @ Feb 20th 2008 12:32PM
yeah, somehow i dont think working for bioware is comparable to working in a sweat shop.
Vager @ Feb 20th 2008 12:16PM
http://www.joystiq.com/2005/10/26/bioware-named-top-100-employer/
The post didn't mention that it was in the top 10 out of the 100 top employers.
Whos more believable?
Xav de Matos @ Feb 20th 2008 12:18PM
These are two different lists. Top 10 for Financial Post and Top 100 in Canada's Best aren't the same thing.
I urge you to follow the links provided in the story for more details.
Intentless @ Feb 20th 2008 12:15PM
if an employer hires you and tells you that they expect you to work overtime... Which is the regular deal in this industry, if you outright refuse to work overtime after the fact they can let you go because you are not a team player. Especially if everyone else is working OT and your refusing to. Granted thats what I've seen in the US. But how can you work in the video game industry and not know your going to see 80 plus hour weeks?
Scott @ Feb 20th 2008 12:27PM
Don't expect to get far in life Milez5858 if you only want to work 40 hours a week every week. Future employers may not fire you but they certainly won't promote you.
danny. @ Feb 20th 2008 12:31PM
Exactly, I'd get fired in less than a month if I made that refusal. Being on salary and working long hours sucks but you have to do it in a most professions.
James @ Feb 20th 2008 12:29PM
Sorry, "the legal right to refuse overtime"? Since when was your employer doing you a frickin' favor hiring you? If your job description is "work 60 hours a week making my game", you get your ass into the office. If you don't like it, quit. I'm sorry, but this is not France [thank God].
Seriously, it's not like they bait-and-switch telling you that you'll be working 35 hour weeks, then double your schedule when crunch time comes. It sucks, but that's how most studios make games nowadays. Get used to it, or find somebody with better management, but don't bitch to the public/government.
Mark @ Feb 20th 2008 12:44PM
I think working long hours is a standard in that industry because there's a bunch of people willing to come in and do the job. They can fire them and pick from a pile of applications for someone else who will do the same job longer.
As far as people's comments that you need to do this kind of stuff or you won't get promoted or it's not bait and switch... Not everyone is looking to get promoted. Some people are looking to make enough so that they can live and enjoy their life. And some companies do bait and switch in the same ways employees do. "Will you work more than 40 hours?" "I sure will. But how many hours more are we talking here?" "Oh, only about 5 extra hours a week.... when we really need it." It's like being on a first date. Both sides are lying trying to make a good impression.
Doug @ Feb 20th 2008 12:53PM
You kids slamming this guy Milez5858 are idiots.
Overtime abuse is real. Just because you guys aren't out of Pampers yet and don't know first-hand what this guy was saying, doesn't make it a joke. It happens a lot, in many media industries, (not just gaming) because without labor organization, employers can get away with it. I'm no unionizer, but that's the reason. Because they can.
The constant 60-80 work week cycle of being chained to your desk is also real. It's where every industry is going, so laugh it up, kids, because you'll be right in the trenches soon enough, and complaining louder than anyone, especially when you hit your 30's and want to do more with your life than stare at a computer screen for 14 hours and then go out drinking with your co-workers.
And no, they don't say, "we want you to work overtime every night," you morons, they say, "we're an employee-first company, and we will watch out for you." The overtime just starts to come in waves and no one acknowledges it until you're there all the time and worried about getting fired for taking a Saturday off. And shame on you if you have to make rent and can't just walk out the door because your employer changed the arrangement.
Viridium @ Feb 20th 2008 1:02PM
An excellent voice of reason, Doug, and I couldn't agree more.
xenocidic @ Feb 20th 2008 2:20PM
In Canada, you can be fired for any reason, as long as they give you notice or pay you in lieu of the notice period.
Carl @ Feb 20th 2008 2:39PM
If you are on salary (vs hourly wage), overtime doesn't count in Alberta. If you work 80 hours, you make the same as if you work 40 in a week. That said, star BioWare employees are very well taken care of. Just like any other industry, if you perform you get compensated. Anyone complaining is most likely a whiny bitch who got fired because they're a talentless hack.
Dave @ Feb 20th 2008 3:18PM
That xbox360fanboy picked up this topic, which is beyond the maturity of some readers here like yourself, is too bad. The post was a warning in a legitimate place to air grievances, under "quality of life" of a game industry blog. It was a heads-up for people who might work at this company to consider. Being a whiny bitch seems to be your job.
The fact that the posts were deleted because Bioware threatened the poster--who didn't even work at Bioware--should be cause enough to believe what the post said, which is that Bioware controls people to get its way.
Because you like Bioware's games means you can't understand the complexities of the workplace?
By the way, if you think you're going to sidestep the company abuse that everyone else receives by being a "star" employee for 30 years, good luck.
Send us a postcard, "star."
Matter @ Feb 20th 2008 6:40PM
I agree and I disagree with the comments and the article.
I'm a web developer, and I can relate, I've seen my fair share of long days, which turn into long weeks etc. I am a salary employee, which means if I put in OT it makes no difference to my paycheck. So far the most I have worked in a 2 week pay period is 161 hours and I was "paid" for 80 of them. That is of course on the extreme end of things, it will usually average out to be around 100 - 110 hours per 2 weeks.
This would probably piss alot of people off, but it is the nature of the business. It is what is expected of me. It is my job to buckle down when deadlines are near, and do what it takes. It is a nature of the business.
Don't get me wrong, I'm well compensated in my salary (I dont know what this particular employee was making) and also have other perks, I am able to roll in at noon if i want. If I only work 60 hours for 2 weeks i still get my normal wage.
Basically what it boils down to im my opinion is that it is a two way street, and it is up to the employee and employer to talk and communicate and come to a common ground of what is expected from both sides. It is very easy for one side to take advantage of the other, so as long as both parties know what each expects then it should be a good work place.
Matt
Pro-Truth League @ Feb 20th 2008 7:41PM
Fact: Employers like employees that they can whip around and exploit.
Bravo to people who don't play that game!
Kalroy @ Feb 20th 2008 9:39PM
As a welder and having worked in construction and plant maintenance, I gotta say I have a lot of sympathy for people who get fired for refusing to work longer than 40 hours a week. Nothing but empathy. I really feel for people who have to work those long hours not in the snow, or 100 degree plus weather or twenty stories up, but in a climate controlled office.
Look, just go get a regular nine to five job that doesn't have a history of huge amounts of overtime. I took a pay cut of over $30kUS a year to work back in country. I took another pay cut of over $20kUS to work near home, without overtime, and have the time to spend with my wife and kids. $50k to go home at night and watch my oldest play high school football? Heck yeah, and a bargain at that price.
So have a nice hot steaming cup of STFU, grow up, and learn to accept responsibility for the choices you make. If you wanna work in an industry that routinely requires long hours than do so. If you wanna work in an industry that gives you a lot of time with your family do so. Accept the sacrifices (in my case money) you need to make to have what you want (in my case time with my family and coming home at night).
Kalroy
Kalroy @ Feb 20th 2008 9:42PM
Pro-Truth League, I totally agree with you. Don't let anyone treat you like crap. Quit and find something else.
Er...Ummmm, on the other hand you can't eat pride, so reverse the order. Find something else, then quit. It feeds better that way.
Kalroy