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EA Workers Readying Lawsuit

by Maarten Goldstein, Nov 12, 2004 7:44am PST

Related Topics – Electronic Arts, lawsuit

EA workers readying class action lawsuit against EA is a GameSpot report about Electronic Arts employees wanting to sue EA for overtime pay. The complaint was filed July 29 and San Francisco law firm Schubert & Reed LLP is currently working on having the the EA worker group certified as a "class" for the lawsuit, which apparently is pretty difficult. The story also reprints an internal email from EA mentioning employees joining the class action suit will not face repercussions, though it's not confirmed that the email is authentic.

This communication responds to earlier email communications from EA management regarding the litigation. The lawsuit alleges that EA improperly classified some of its employees, including 'animators,' 'modelers,' 'texture artists,' 'lighters,' 'background effects artists' and 'environmental artists' as exempt from overtime, and therefore failed to pay those employees overtime compensation. Plaintiff's action seeks statutory penalties, damages, restitution, and injunctive relief. EA denies plaintiff's claim. It is EA's position that it treats its employees fairly and lawfully, and that it has properly classified its employees within the meaning of the law ...

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45 Threads | 220 Comments

#156

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By: richcz3 x Show Full Post

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EA already started their exodus out of California early last year. Canada gives businesses much better tax incentives and their employee salaries are less. The costs of Workmans Compensation in California is way out of control and doubled over last year.

This doesn't excuse EA. EA's practices. They are unconsciencable but the gaming industry as a whole works in much the same way. So if you are wondering if the gaming industry is for you, take note so as not to complain later.

richcz3

Nov 12, 2004 1:04pm PST

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EA already started their exodus out of California early last year. Canada gives businesses much better ta... : richcz3
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- Excuse me, but didn't EA open a second studio in California about two years ago? It's true that Canadi... : hangingChad

#22

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By: Torgo x Show Full Post

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I don't know why they don't just quit.

If someone told me I had to work mandatory 70 hour weeks I would laugh in their face.

Nov 12, 2004 8:22am PST

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I don't know why they don't just quit. If someone told me I had to work mandatory 70 hour weeks I woul... : Torgo
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 21 replies.

#217

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By: Cpt. Baseballbat x Show Full Post

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moo
moo
moo
moo

Nov 12, 2004 10:34pm PST

moo moo moo moo : Cpt. Baseballbat

#86

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By: Avatar x Show Full Post

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In other news, game development in India becomes a booming market and American cry babys wonder where their jobs went.

Nov 12, 2004 10:46am PST

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In other news, game development in India becomes a booming market and American cry babys wonder where the... : Avatar
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 34 replies.

#12

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By: smellslikefish x Show Full Post

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So how long before EA Bangalore opens ?

Nov 12, 2004 8:04am PST

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So how long before EA Bangalore opens ? : smellslikefish
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 14 replies.

#208

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By: dnurk x Show Full Post

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I have always thought that EA games have no soul, just rehashes of old ideas with graphical tricks thrown in. The games reflect the employees, maybe that is why Blizzard games are so creative, they thrive
on 100% brain juice.

Nov 12, 2004 4:44pm PST

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I have always thought that EA games have no soul, just rehashes of old ideas with graphical tricks thrown... : dnurk
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- I find it ironic that you would call Blizzard games creative. Blizzard have always been creators of e... : SpaecKow

#203

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By: Topaz x Show Full Post

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maybe EA does this to prevent the employees from wanting to continue working in the gaming industry and competing with them :)

Nov 12, 2004 4:14pm PST

maybe EA does this to prevent the employees from wanting to continue working in the gaming industry and c... : Topaz

#125

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By: aavenr x Show Full Post

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Guys, make sure you check out this blog post from a 20 year industry veteran, he does a quite enlightening and lucid take on this whole mess... oh and he issues a direct challenge to the EA types out there

http://enginesofmischief.com/blogs/ramblings/archives/2004/11/11/643

Nov 12, 2004 11:29am PST

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Guys, make sure you check out this blog post from a 20 year industry veteran, he does a quite enlightenin... : aavenr
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 13 replies.

#89

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By: SLUDGE^ x Show Full Post

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Personally, I don't think EA has much choice but to ask their current workforce to work a lot of overtime, and I don't fault them for doing so. The overtime pay is what's up for debate here, but people seem to be more outraged by the number of hours people are working.

I wrote a bit about why EA is between a rock and a hard place when it comes to scheduling and resources in my blog. Read it if you're interested.

http://tossed.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=7

Nov 12, 2004 10:49am PST

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Personally, I don't think EA has much choice but to ask their current workforce to work a lot of overtime... : SLUDGE^
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 12 replies.

#188

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By: okellyc x Show Full Post

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Bah you guys need unions, its so much better that way
my union rocks
if i work more then 37 hours a week any hour over they 37 i have to get 2x pay
i have to have 6 weeks payed holiday a year
must have 12 hour breaks from one shift to the next
hour break if working more then 8 hours

the list goes on and on

Nov 12, 2004 2:58pm PST

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Bah you guys need unions, its so much better that way my union rocks if i work more then 37 hours a wee... : okellyc
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- Professionals typically don't unionize - and besides that would cause even more outsourcing.... : SgtFritz

#109

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By: personaljesus x Show Full Post

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What is a class action suit anyway? Is it related to crimes comitted against a class? If so, can ZERGS sue Blizzard for reducing their health/hitpoints in the early Starcraft patches?

Nov 12, 2004 11:09am PST

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What is a class action suit anyway? Is it related to crimes comitted against a class? If so, can ZERGS su... : personaljesus
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 5 replies.

#166

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By: RoccoDick x Show Full Post

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Jeesus.. Reading through all these responses and _every one_ has confused the people that are behind this lawsuit with 'programmers'. Read the news again. And again. It states "including 'animators,' 'modelers,' 'texture artists,' 'lighters,' 'background effects artists' and 'environmental artists'". Get it?

'Programmers' are making the most money of all in this business and usually call the shots (rightfully so btw) so they're not in any tough spot.

The problem is for the texture artists and well.. artists in general as they face being obsolete, replaced by outsourcing.

Nov 12, 2004 1:53pm PST

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Jeesus.. Reading through all these responses and _every one_ has confused the people that are behind this... : RoccoDick
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- toggle
  Lol! turn your argument around...programmers make the most money, so outsourcing THEIR jobs would make... : deathofrats
  - Programmers _are_ outsourced, that's the point so can't be turned around. They have been outsourced for d... : RoccoDick
  - It boggles my mind but EA is already outsourcing concept art. Why? I don't fucking know. Concept artist : octosloth
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  No programmers don't call the shots, producers and designers have far more say usually. especially at big... : Fred Garvin
  - toggle
    Yes and producers and designers come from.. previous background as programmers. 3 names. Warren Spector. ... : RoccoDick
    - You are talking about the exception rather than the rule. : Chod
    - Wow, what world do you live in? Most producers and designers these days are not programmers. Programming ... : Fred Garvin

#171

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By: alcueso x Show Full Post

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between practcies like this and outsourcing...im thinking stuff like this is a good reason why a uniion needs to be formed of IT people, tnat can exert some serious influcence on all levels of gov't and business..

thoughts?

Nov 12, 2004 2:03pm PST

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between practcies like this and outsourcing...im thinking stuff like this is a good reason why a uniion n... : alcueso
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- Yep...I don't think it's about strongarming anyone, though most people(aka NOT IT people) think it's abou... : Don Vito Corleone

#11

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By: BulletPro x Show Full Post

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Slashdot links to another blog about a guy getting fired for not working 80 hours a week:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/joestraitiff/368.html

Nov 12, 2004 8:03am PST

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Slashdot links to another blog about a guy getting fired for not working 80 hours a week: http://www.liv... : BulletPro
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 12 replies.
- http://www.shacknews.com/ja.zz?id=8971405 : smellslikefish
- Wow! Great read! That is the exact reason I am perfectly content making an 'average' salary. I will ne... : Don Vito Corleone
- toggle
  Too bad EA's buying up gaming shops that produce games I play, BF1942 / Desert Combat being the most rece... : Ride-My-Rocket
  - toggle
    Since when were DICE bought out by anyone? : node
    - toggle
      A long time ago. Before they even announced BF:Vietnam, if I remember correctly. : jet-poop
      
      mind posting a link to said story? : johngloid
- toggle
  If a company pays you a "six figure" moving allowance, you'd have to think they'd expect you to work as a... : Thradar
  - ^^^management : boomstickah
  - yeah often they have some kinda clause that you have to work there X years to keep the money.. So they gi... : alexthegreat2
  - "bit pusher" hahha nice way to totally mischaracterize one of the most technical and demanding careers th... : ChickenBreath
  - Except slavery is sorta wrong. And, uh, illegal. I think. : Debased

#155

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By: AllYourBase x Show Full Post

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sucks for the employees ESPN NFL2k5 was better than Madden. Nothing EA has done has done much for me in years

Nov 12, 2004 12:48pm PST

sucks for the employees ESPN NFL2k5 was better than Madden. Nothing EA has done has done much for me in ... : AllYourBase

#26

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By: MR 9000 x Show Full Post

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I did my time with EA a few years ago. Yes, I worked crazy, stupid hours (5 and a half months, 7 days a week, 10-14 hours a day, without a single day off) and you know what?

I quit.

So should they. Its called personal responsibility.

Nov 12, 2004 8:26am PST

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I did my time with EA a few years ago. Yes, I worked crazy, stupid hours (5 and a half months, 7 days a ... : MR 9000
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 20 replies.

#147

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By: orgcaptainnemo x Show Full Post

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This is fucking awesome! Go EA employees.

Nov 12, 2004 12:09pm PST

This is fucking awesome! Go EA employees. : orgcaptainnemo

#140

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By: Porkasaurus x Show Full Post

Reply

This is so common to the game industry. It won't stop until the stream of people coming into the industry decide doing anything they can to make games is not worth it.

Nov 12, 2004 11:58am PST

This is so common to the game industry. It won't stop until the stream of people coming into the industry... : Porkasaurus

#122

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By: cameljoe x Show Full Post

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Yikes, EA has horrible software management skills. Any project that has the team working that long must produce some pretty crappy software.

Although, doesn't EA generally make good games?

Nov 12, 2004 11:22am PST

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Yikes, EA has horrible software management skills. Any project that has the team working that long must ... : cameljoe
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- If by "good" you mean "decent yet bland licenses pushed out year after year", then yeah ;) : SiW73

#90

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By: natestah_2000 x Show Full Post

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At InfinityWard when I was working on Call of Duty I would come into the office on the weekend just to hang out and play games and see hardly anybody there. I came in one Sunday to pick up some stuff and the office was completely empty. After hours you'd see a few people working hard on whatever project they were having difficulty with or playing games but staying late was not enforced or even encouraged.

I like to think of Call of Duty as proof that you don't need Extreme crunch times to produce a good game.

Nov 12, 2004 10:52am PST

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At InfinityWard when I was working on Call of Duty I would come into the office on the weekend just to ha... : natestah_2000
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 6 replies.
- <3 : Ebu
- If people don't work overtime for you because they have a sense of responsibility but instead because you... : SLUDGE^
- wow, right on. : Turd Ferguson

#27

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By: boobie x Show Full Post

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is it just me or do you think shorter hours MAY get more work done? i know if i gotta work long hours for long periods of time. ill be slacking off a hell of a lot of the time. unless someone is right behind them with a whip im sure they have a lot of slack off time as well. shorter hours may get more productive hours out of them. mixed with the more rest time as well could give them clearer thinking and better work ethic.. anyone else with me on this?

Nov 12, 2004 8:28am PST

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is it just me or do you think shorter hours MAY get more work done? i know if i gotta work long hours for... : boobie
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 8 replies.
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  I believe it is a proven fact that 8-9 hours a day is peak productivity. Any more and your ability to pr... : themelon
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    That can't really "be proven." : cajuncook
    - Sure it can. After a certain # of hours of doing the same kind of shit your brain just starts freaking t... : headless
    - toggle
      the pentagon did a study in ww2 in order to maximize the output of their war material production lines. t... : ChickenBreath
      
      forgot to mention that this was with very patriotic workers that WANTED to work as many house as they phy... : ChickenBreath
      
      toggle
      and that's physical work, not brain work. : cameljoe
      
      true true... : ChickenBreath

#55

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By: coyoterys x Show Full Post

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Challenge Everything!

The prosecution rests. :)

Nov 12, 2004 9:18am PST

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Challenge Everything! The prosecution rests. :) : coyoterys
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- If its in the game, its in the game? : goats ecx

#87

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By: reflex33 x Show Full Post

Reply

Interesting story about working long hours in reply...

Nov 12, 2004 10:48am PST

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Interesting story about working long hours in reply... : reflex33
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 4 replies.
- toggle
  I few months back I got a call for an interview with a local company to design computer systems for tool ... : reflex33
  - toggle
    I don't think its even close to how it will be. I think in France they work 35 hours on average. Americ... : handofthrawn
    - Generally, the good software companies assume that their employees will only do 25 hours of actual work a... : cameljoe

#52

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By: Ben Barker x Show Full Post

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OK, so I'm never working for EA.

Nov 12, 2004 9:14am PST

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OK, so I'm never working for EA. : Ben Barker
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- You shouldn't HAVE to be afraid of working for EA...or any company for that matter. I think being comp... : flasher 907

#57

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By: Thradar x Show Full Post

Reply

EA...challenge everything.

Wonder if they'll be up to this challenge?

Nov 12, 2004 9:20am PST

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EA...challenge everything. Wonder if they'll be up to this challenge? : Thradar
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- You stole my easy joke! I'm suing you! : coyoterys

#50

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By: alcaron x Show Full Post

Reply

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA ANOTHER LAWSUIT THREAD FOR ME TO WREAK HAVOC UPON!

Hahahaha, I love you guys :) Not like in a gay kind of way.

Nov 12, 2004 9:12am PST

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BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA ANOTHER LAWSUIT THREAD FOR ME TO WREAK HAVOC UPON! Hahahaha, I love you guys :) Not li : alcaron
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- toggle
  Not that theres anything wrong with that. and no i'm not! : Ziz
  - toggle
    Seinfeld?? : lavaflare
    - Is it even a question. : flasher 907

#7

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By: speon x Show Full Post

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Normally, I roll my eyes at the mention of a lawsuit... (It's the American way!)

...but I kind of hope EA gets the bajeezus sued out of them.

I've got no EA love. Thought the PC version of Skate or Die was kind of neat.

Nov 12, 2004 7:57am PST

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Normally, I roll my eyes at the mention of a lawsuit... (It's the American way!) ...but I kind of hope : speon
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- toggle
  There are justified lawsuits, and this is one of them IMO. : Turd Ferguson
  - Oh yes, I agree...and though I feel bad about it, (wishing ill upon anyone/anything, no matter how evil, ... : speon

#45

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By: Str8Dog x Show Full Post

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fling that shit code monkey!

Nov 12, 2004 8:54am PST

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fling that shit code monkey! : Str8Dog
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- toggle
  fling that monkey, shit code? : project13
  - that code fling monkey shit? : shyguy74
- toggle
  until now everyone in this thread has had a number in their name. : freshview
  - Way to fuck it up for the rest of us :( : SiW73

#68

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By: x-eyd|mary x Show Full Post

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The last EA game I bought was Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, and it was a total piece of shit. EA can suck it down. I hope they get goatse'd over this one.

Nov 12, 2004 9:54am PST

The last EA game I bought was Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, and it was a total piece of shit. EA can suck i... : x-eyd|mary

#38

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By: slickdoody x Show Full Post

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It's amazing that so many employees are unhappy working at EA yet EA feels like it's the employees fault.

Do they think that they somehow accidentally hire uncommitted employee after uncommitted employee? Do they believe that there are so many "crazy" people out there and that they just can't find 'good help'?

Or is it just the truckloads of cash that are being delivered every day that blinds them to the fact that they're a horrible company who treat their employees like dirt?

Nov 12, 2004 8:46am PST

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It's amazing that so many employees are unhappy working at EA yet EA feels like it's the employees fault.... : slickdoody
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 3 replies.
- Its the money. Its always about the money. : Torgo
- ...as the EA higher-ups race around in sky-scraper penthouses furnished with mahogany and trimmed in gold... : yAak

#39

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By: Ziz x Show Full Post

Reply

What? Workers don't like whips and chains? Geez what's this world coming to

Nov 12, 2004 8:46am PST

What? Workers don't like whips and chains? Geez what's this world coming to : Ziz

#35

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By: Don Juan DeNerdo x Show Full Post

Reply

Good luck to all of you guys.
Stick it to the man! I hope you take what you deserve + damages.

Nov 12, 2004 8:39am PST

Good luck to all of you guys. Stick it to the man! I hope you take what you deserve + damages. : Don Juan DeNerdo

#34

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By: tunis5000 x Show Full Post

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Good! Overtime isn't a big deal, but when it's forced and not properly conpensated is when it becomes and issue, I hope EA gets what it deserves...

Nov 12, 2004 8:37am PST

Good! Overtime isn't a big deal, but when it's forced and not properly conpensated is when it becomes an... : tunis5000

#25

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By: ]pm[chem x Show Full Post

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based upon the quoted section of the shacknews article:

this appears to do nothing for the programmers, which is what all the blog links were talking about in the first place to get the shack riled up.

too bad.

Nov 12, 2004 8:25am PST

based upon the quoted section of the shacknews article: this appears to do nothing for the programmers... : ]pm[chem

#15

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By: broly1718 x Show Full Post

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http://www.livejournal.com/users/ea_spouse/

Nov 12, 2004 8:14am PST

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http://www.livejournal.com/users/ea_spouse/ : broly1718
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- I feel so lucky to work in a dev studio where the attitude towards employees is not like this - reading t... : SideSalad

#21

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By: bbq gibs x Show Full Post

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It's true, and not just with EA either. I have friends in the industry and have heard the horror stories... Game programmers are paid shit and pressured to work slave hours with no overtime pay.

Nov 12, 2004 8:22am PST

It's true, and not just with EA either. I have friends in the industry and have heard the horror storie... : bbq gibs

#10

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By: Kaiser x Show Full Post

Reply

REVOLUTION, COMRADE!!!

Nov 12, 2004 8:02am PST

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REVOLUTION, COMRADE!!! : Kaiser
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- Power to the People! : helvetica

#8

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By: Alec Matias x Show Full Post

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Man, that spouse's blog sure did start something.

Nov 12, 2004 7:57am PST

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Man, that spouse's blog sure did start something. : Alec Matias
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 3 replies.
- toggle
  ...and yes, I know the lawsuit was initiated a while ago, but her blog is causing a ton of press on the s... : Alec Matias
  - reminds me of the "net slave" articles back during the dot com boom. : dextius

#14

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By: iplay x Show Full Post

Reply

Everything about working in the gaming industry is perfect for me, except this part, and its a HUGE deal. As much as we complain about how long we have to wait for games that get pushed back, the number of hours some of these people work is unbelievable and really these people deserve their lives back.

Nov 12, 2004 8:11am PST

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Everything about working in the gaming industry is perfect for me, except this part, and its a HUGE deal.... : iplay
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
- ^^ IAWTP. It'll ship when it's done :D : CplBeaker

#13

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By: CplBeaker x Show Full Post

Reply

More Coverage:
CNET > http://news.com.com/2061-1043-5449296.html?tag=rsspr.5449339
Blue's > http://www.bluesnews.com/cgi-bin/board.pl?action=viewthread&threadid=52808
/. > http://yro.slashdot.org/yro/04/11/12/0537234.shtml?tid=123&tid=127&tid=156

Nov 12, 2004 8:05am PST

More Coverage: CNET > http://news.com.com/2061-1043-5449296.html?tag=rsspr.5449339 Blue's > http://www.... : CplBeaker

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