It's Like a Union, But Not

There has been a lot of discussion as to whether unions are necessary in the games industry. With allegations relating to quality of life concerns for developers at various companies, the issue become more complex. A group called PEER, which officially launched just weeks ago, hopes to provide many of the benefits a game developers' union would provide, but without actually being a union. The Professional Electronic Entertainment Recruiters Association is an alliance of eight top recruiting agencies that work with video game publishers and developers. PEER hopes to maintain levels of ethics and workplace standards by keeping its clients informed about relevant work-related issues at prospective employers, encouraging developers to work in more satisfying positions which would in turn put pressure on publishers and developers to create better workplaces. Another purpose of PEER itself is to keep tabs on the policies of its actual recruiting company members. To announce the formation of the group, PEER president David Musgrove issued an open letter to the industry:

Our response was the formation of PEER, the first association of professional recruiters in this industry. The purpose of PEER is to reaffirm the high ground for ethical standards, quality performance and as an alliance of those who lead the profession, to encourage others to either be accountable for their conduct and efficacy or to be re-categorized as those who will not. And further, leading by example to improve relations with employers through increased service facility that justifies the cost.
... For members of PEER and those who want to join our ranks, the bar has always been performance, trust and relationship business in that order. New faces in HR departments and game company management need to frequently be reacquainted with professionalism by the leadership in outside recruiting and that leadership will be the members of PEER.