Members of the Bethesda Game Studios Union staged a protest outside the company's Rockville, Maryland headquarters this Tuesday, marking the arrival of Xbox CEO Asha Sharma with a large inflatable rat and 800 red flags.
The union members placed one flag for each of the 800 employees they stated have been cut from their teams. The demonstration follows Microsoft's announcement last month of 3,200 total job cuts across its Xbox division for the year 2026. According to the union, 1,600 of these positions have already been eliminated, with another 1,600 departures planned.
Context of the Protest
Nathan Hahn, a representative for the OneBGS union group, stated that the protest was intended to make their presence visible to leadership and emphasize the human impact of the recent restructuring. The union has expressed its intent to continue mobilizing against the layoffs to ensure fair treatment for affected developers and testers.
The demonstration coincided with a visit from Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, who was at the facility to attend a live playthrough of The Elder Scrolls 6. Following the visit, Sharma posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the scale and story of the project were “incredible.”
Impact on Xbox Operations
The job cuts are part of a broader "reset" announced by Xbox leadership in July. In addition to the workforce reductions, this initiative has resulted in:
- The cancellation of specific projects, including Ninja Theory's Project Mara.
- The departure of multiple studios, including Compulsion Games, Double Fine, and Undead Labs.
At this time, it is unknown how the ongoing labor actions or the recent staff reductions will impact the long-term production schedules for current Bethesda projects.