The harassment and discrimination scandal at Activision Blizzard has attracted the attention of another agency. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched its own investigation into the company.
This is reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the investigation. According to the publication, the SEC has requested internal documents from Activision Blizzard. These include minutes of meetings of the board of directors since 2019, personal files of six former employees and agreements on dismissals that were signed in 2021.
The SEC is interested in how management reacted to employee complaints. She will also deal with whether Activision Blizzard should have told investors about what was happening in the company before the media became aware of the lawsuit from the California Department of Fair Employment and Placement (DFEH).
In addition, the SEC has subpoenaed the head of Activision Blizzard, Bobby Kotick, and several other top managers.
The SEC has not yet commented on the publication of The Wall Street Journal. Activision Blizzard spokeswoman Helaine Klasky confirmed that the commission is conducting an investigation that concerns “the company’s disclosure of information on employment issues and related things.” Also, according to Klasky, the SEC has sent a subpoena to several current and former Activision Blizzard employees.
The scandal surrounding the situation at Activision Blizzard broke out in July. Then the developer was sued by DFEH. The California department complained about the atmosphere of “student fraternity” that has formed in the company: women face harassment, cannot advance in the service and receive low salaries.