Activision Blizzard Is Sued by California Over Workplace Culture

The lawsuit says women at the gaming company were paid less and discriminated against, and it described a culture of sexual harassment.

A California state agency is suing Activision Blizzard, the video game maker that produces Call of Duty, over claims of sexual harassment and discrimination. After a two-year investigation, the state’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court that Activision fostered a “‘frat boy’ workplace culture.” Executives sexually harassed women, the agency said, and male employees openly joked about rape and drank alcohol while engaging in “inappropriate behavior” toward women at their cubicles during events known as “cube crawls.” The lawsuit added that women were routinely paid less than men for similar work and were less likely to be promoted.