The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) announced that developer Anemone Hug Interactive has joined its Canada branch, and in turn become the first “full-service” game developer in Canada to successfully form a union.
“For years, game workers in Canada have been working without the benefits and protections of a union collective agreement and without the strength of union representation,” wrote IATSE’s international VP John Lewis. “Today, a clear message has been sent to game workers in every province – forming a union is not only possible; it has been done.”
IATSE is a North American labor union for the industries of theater, film, and TV. Though various unions have been formed across the industry this year, Anemone Hug’s is the first to be connected to IATSE. A labor union specifically for game developers, RPG-IATSE, was formed within IATSE in 2020.
Founded in 2015, Anemone Hug Interactive is a studio to provides secondary support for game developers, and has contributed to the development of titles such as Secret Ponchos and Hardspace: Shipbreaker.
Continued IATSE’s international president Matthew Loeb, “Our expertise in this sector will ensure that the workers from Anemone Hug Interactive will get the representation they need and deserve…By working together, game workers can have more control of their working conditions and can address the issues that have been plaguing this industry for years.”
Citing issues such as crunch, harassment, and a lack of communication, IATSE wrote that it was “committed to working with game workers across Canada to address these issues and more.”