Electronic Arts workers, along with the video game union United Videogame Workers-CWA Local 9433, issued a public statement criticizing the Saudi buyout of the company and calling for scrutiny from regulators.
Statement written in part by CWA and EA employees who have signed up for membership industry trade union UVW-CWA– claims that the deal puts the company's employees at risk, who have been suffering losses for two years layoffs And studio closure. EA informed workers that “no immediate layoffs“will take place after the buyout is completed, but these assurances come from a company that said it was prepared for it.”accelerated growth“after cutting hundreds of jobs.
“EA is not a struggling company,” the unnamed employees said in a statement. “EA's success was driven entirely by the tens of thousands of EA employees whose creativity, skills and innovation made EA worth purchasing in the first place. However, we, the very people who will suffer as a result of this transaction, were not represented at all when this buyout was carried out or discussed.”
The statement raised concerns that studios considered “less profitable” but whose work defines EA's reputation could find themselves on the chopping block. Citation reporting from our very own Nicole CarpenterThey asked what would be done to pay off the $20 billion in debt secured in the deal by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund and Affinity Partners, a firm owned by Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law.
“If jobs are lost or studios close because of this deal, it will be a choice, not a necessity, made to line the pockets of investors rather than to strengthen the company,” they said.
EA buyout participant Jared Kushner is already advising key regulator Scott Bessent
The announcement came a day after U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Richard Blumenthal sent harsh letters US Treasury Secretary and Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Investment Scott Bessent and Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson, who expressed concerns about “foreign influence” as a result of the deal. This influence could include “surveillance of Americans, covert Saudi propaganda, and selective retaliation and censorship of individuals disapproved of by the Saudi government.”
The pair called on Bessent and other regulators to conduct a “thorough investigation” of the deal. EA and CWA workers echoed that message, calling on elected officials and regulators to exercise similar scrutiny and “ensure that any path forward protects jobs, preserves creative freedom, and holds decision-making accountable to the workers who make EA successful.”
They then commented that regulators and elected officials “won't save” the video game industry. This comment is especially relevant given Kushner's close relationship with Bessent. According to Wall Street JournalKushner advised Bessent during ongoing trade negotiations with China.
The union argued that game developers, especially those at EA, would be the only ones who could save the industry. “An organization is the only thing that guarantees workers a real voice when ownership changes hands, and it is the only way to ensure that the people who make video games have a say in how they are run,” they wrote.
“The value of video games is in their workers. As one voice, we, members of the industry-wide video game workers union UVW-CWA, stand together and do not let corporate greed determine the future of our industry.”
The game developer has reached out to EA for comment and will update this story once a response is received.
