The makers of Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering have unionized. Today, the developers of the massive tabletop games have announced that they're joining United Wizards of the Coast - CWA, and are calling on their company to voluntarily recognize the union. Among their demands is protection from what they call an increasing push for AI use from Wizards of the Coast management.
United Wizards of the Coast announced its existence in April. Back then, it consisted only of the developers behind the digital card game, Magic: The Gathering Arena. Today, the workers behind Dungeons & Dragons, D&D Beyond, Magic: The Gathering, and Duel Masters announced their intent to unionize under the same banner. This union is supported by the Communication Workers of America, which has previously supported unions at publishers like Activision and Xbox.
Wizards of the Coast itself has until October 13 to respond to the union's request for voluntary recognition. The company did not respond to a deadline for voluntary recognition when the MTG Arena devs first announced their intent to unionize, but the union nonetheless won its election in June.
For now, the union is asking fans to support them by signing an online petition. Among demands like "fair wages," "reliable and easily accessible healthcare," and "remote work protections," the union is also demanding "protection against the encroachment of AI."
"Leadership, without regard for the desires of our teams, has pushed for adoption of LLMs and generative AI," the union claims. "This has to stop; our teams deserve a robust and enforceable AI policy that aligns with our goals and values."
The union has already filed an election petition with the National Labor Relations Board. If Wizards of the Coast does not choose to voluntarily recognize the union, it'll be up to elections among workers and the NLRB to force the issue.
