ZA/UM, the independent studio behind the critically acclaimed RPG Disco Elysium, has achieved a significant milestone in the United Kingdom`s gaming industry. Its developers have successfully formed and had their union officially recognized, marking a historic first for the country`s gaming sector.
This groundbreaking development was announced in an October 2 blog post on the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) Game Workers website. Chairperson Spring McParlin-Jones and organizing officer Eugenia Peruzzo expressed immense enthusiasm for this breakthrough. They highlighted its profound importance, particularly because ZA/UM`s recognized union could provide inspiration and hope for other UK-based developers seeking to establish collective bargaining power.
The IWGB blog post described this as an “exciting milestone for workers industry-wide,” establishing a formal channel for employees and management to negotiate critical workplace issues. These include mental health support, financial security, and achieving a healthy work-life balance. With the backing of the IWGB, ZA/UM will now elect a committee of workplace representatives to articulate the team`s concerns, fundamentally empowering the developers.
McParlin-Jones reiterated her hope for other game developers to “join us” in the collective effort to improve the industry, emphasizing that recognized unions are the essential means to achieve this transformation.
Anyone working in the sector can see that the game has been rigged against us for far too long. Now, developers at ZA/UM are demonstrating that by coming together as a union, we can reclaim power and shape our workplaces for the better. We need to build an industry where workers can create exciting, meaningful games without compromising their social lives, their mental health, or their financial stability.
Peruzzo echoed McParlin-Jones` sentiments, affirming that this recognition is concrete proof of the collective strength of developers. She characterized it not as an isolated agreement, but rather as “an avalanche in the making.”
Our inaugural IWGB ZA/UM recognition agreement underscores the power game workers wield when they unite, trust one another, and become part of our Union. Recognition agreements lay the groundwork for a healthy relationship between the company and workers and rebalance the scale of powers after a few terrible years for the game industry and the redundancies we have seen happening at ZA/UM lately. We are looking forward to many more to come in the future.
ZA/UM Unveils New Espionage RPG: Zero Parades
In other news from ZA/UM, the studio recently unveiled its next project, titled “Zero Parades,” during Sony`s State of Play livestream on September 24. This upcoming espionage RPG is set to feature the familiar isometric perspective and randomized dice-roll mechanics that were central to Disco Elysium. “Zero Parades” is currently slated for release sometime next year.