Summary
Bungieis being sued by a former HR manager for retaliation and wrongful termination after she reported a potential incident of racial discrimination to her supervisors. The former employee was hired byBungiein May 2022, which is just a few months after reports of toxic work culture at theDestiny 2studio.
Destiny 2continues to be Bungie’s flagship titleover six years after its release in September 2017. The online first-person shooter and Bungie itself have undergone drastic changes in those six years, including major gameplay overhauls and management restructuring. In January 2022, Sony announced its acquisition of Bungie for $3.6 billion, which was finalized just six months later in July 2022. In the past year, Bungie redoubled its efforts against cheaters and harassers affectingDestiny 2and its developers. Sony also reportedly put pressure on Bungie to correct its internal affairs involving the studio’s work culture.
According to a new IGN report, former HR manager Ingrid Alm is suingtheDestiny 2developer, alleging that she was wrongfully dismissed after indicating a case of racial bias from a Bungie supervisor to an employee referred to as “James Smith.” A few months after being hired by Bungie in May 2022, Alm was instructed to investigate the performance of James Smith, who allegedly pointed out that he was the only Black employee on a team of 50 employees. He expressed concern that he was being racially targeted by his supervisor at Bungie, and Alm shared details of the situation with her own supervisor. Alm recommended that Smith’s supervisor should receive diversity training, but she states that her commendation was met with hostility and denial. Her recommendation was denied since the supervisor “had been there for a long time” and is considered a highly regarded employee.
After the recommendation was denied, Alm alleged that Bungie recommended the termination of Smith’s employment. She disagreed to this measure, saying that Smith’s termination would be racial bias. In the weeks followingSeason of Plunder’s launch, Alm reached out to Bungie’s director of equity and inclusion, Dr. Courtney Benjamin, for advice regarding the incident in September 2022. Alm also suggested that Smith should be given a warning instead of a termination, and Alm’s supervisor was “extremely angry” after learning about her conversation with Benjamin. Later that month, Alm was placed in the “needs improvement” category during a review and subsequently cut off from her email and Bungie platform access.
At the end of the month, Alm was informed that her resignation from Bungie was accepted despite not intending to resign. The former HR manager also claims that she declined to sign a document stating that she “voluntary resigned,” and she did not receive an email response from Bungie chief people officer Holly Barbacovi after reaching out for help.
Bungie denies Alm’s story, and the company did not provide further context involving the matter. Alm is suing for retaliation and wrongful termination, and she’s seeking recourse involving wages, damages for emotional distress, and litigation fees. The jury trial is scheduled for July 11, 2025, which is just one month prior to the launch ofDestiny 2’sThe Final Shapeexpansion.
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