Magic: The Gathering Arena developers move to unionize at Wizards of the Coast

A large group of developers working on Magic: The Gathering Arena has announced plans to unionize with the Communications Workers of America. If it goes through, it would be the first union at Hasbro-owned Wizards of the Coast.

The proposed unit is expected to include around 100 workers. According to Kotaku’s report, organizers say a supermajority of eligible employees has already signed on. The group has asked management to voluntarily recognize the union by the end of this week, and it has also filed an election petition with the National Labor Relations Board.

Workers say the push picked up after Hasbro’s layoffs in 2023, which cut about 2,000 jobs across the company, followed by another round affecting 3% of staff in 2025. Return-to-office mandates also helped accelerate organizing, according to employees involved in the effort.

In a letter to management, the group said its main concerns include protections against layoffs, clearer remote work rules, guardrails around generative AI, an end to mandatory crunch, and better transparency and equity. Workers also pointed to issues around role definitions, career growth, and ownership of personal projects.

While this effort is centered on Arena, it also adds to the wider wave of game industry unionization over the last few years, especially as developers push for more job security after repeated layoffs across major publishers and studios.