A few days ago, Telltale Games announced that it was closing down. The executives terminated roughly 250 employees, some of which had relocated and started positions less than a week before the announcement. The studio didn't offer those employees severance or any other warning that this might happen.
Vernie Roberts, a Telltale employee, has initiated a class-action lawsuit against his former employer, stating that the company violated labor laws by not informing employees before their termination. According to a report by Polygon, "the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, stipulates that most businesses with at least a hundred full-time workers must notify employees sixty days in advance of any plant closings or mass layoffs."
It's obvious that the manner in which Telltale closed was flawed and irresponsible. The fact that executives are partnering with potential partners to continue The Walking Dead: The Final Season and not offering former employees severance is questionable to say the least. Hopefully the courts will find in favor of the employees.
There are reports that Telltale has filed for bankruptcy. If this happens, then even a win won't get the employees any compensation unless the government determines that Telltale executives lied about their financial situation. We'll keep you posted as soon as we know more. Hopefully those terminated will be able to find positions in the gaming industry soon. There need to be more protections for those who work as developers so that those individuals can avoid such precarious situations.
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