(News Item) EA Hit By Second Employee Lawsuit

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Xevious

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I got this post from Deathtrip at CGTalk.com:


EA Hit By Second Employee Lawsuit

A second Electronic Arts employee has filed a class-action lawsuit seeking overtime from the company, similar to suits filed against the company last year and against Vivendi Universal Games. The suit is also part of a general trend of Silicon Valley workers demanding proper recognition for overtime work.

Leander Hasty, a Culver City software engineer for Electronic Arts since June 2003, filed his suit against the company in state Superior Court in San Mateo. Hasty is seeking undisclosed back pay, damages and penalties for himself and fellow workers.

Since 2000, California labor law has exempted some professionals in the software industry from overtime regulations. Companies do not have to pay workers overtime if they make more than $41 an hour and engage in advanced work that is creative or intellectual in nature.

Hasty's lawyers contend that Electronic Arts' software engineers should be eligible for overtime because they "do not perform work that is original or creative," have no management responsibilities and are seldom allowed to use their own judgment.

A similar suit filed in July by a 26-year-old lead programmer also argued that Electronic Arts' game designers are entitled to overtime like image effects workers in the film and theater industries, which are not covered by the exemption for the software industry.

A survey by the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) cites rapid burnout by workers. An emotional blog by an Electronic Arts 'widow' on LiveJournal.com triggered thousands of sympathetic responses.

Next month, the developers' association and the Game Developers Conference (GDC) will hold a day long summit in San Francisco examining ways to improve quality of life for game industry workers.

LINK: http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/02/22/news_6118948.html
 
[quote name='CappyCobra']Site login? Bah! (uses BugMeNot) :D

Looks like that link got slashdotted. It's no longer valid.[/quote]

Sorry about that. I will try to post another link.
 
The going rate for programming in Cali is ~$50/hr... I don't think theres much room for complaint.
 
[quote name='Kayden']The going rate for programming in Cali is ~$50/hr... I don't think theres much room for complaint.[/quote]

Keep in mind that these people don't get paid by the hour, they have to be paid salary to be exempt from the overtime laws. $50/hour translates into $100k/year. That's awesome.

However, these people frequently have to work 60-70+ hours a week and work on weekends. Plus, many of them don't get to use vacation time since they can't get away from work.

You do the math....70 hours/week is 10 hours /day, every day of the week. At that rate, the salary works out to $28/hour. Still a good chunk of change, but would you be willing to work those hours every day for months on end?
 
[quote name='CappyCobra']Site login? Bah! (uses BugMeNot) :D

Looks like that link got slashdotted. It's no longer valid.[/quote]


I've always wondering something about your avatar. Her boobs can't be that big in the game, right?
 
If the guy is performing in a manner that is, as his lawyer says, neither creative or original, then his salary is way too high and his ass should be canned.

People in the game industry habitually agree to delivery dates they can never meet except by putting in much greater than 40 hour work weeks. Think about this stuff before you sign the contract or get out of game development. You can always write SAP scripts while punching a time clock on your way in and out of the office every day. You'll never put in unpaid overtime but you'll also never be able to point to something ona retail shelf and say, 'I did that.'
 
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