Video game giant Riot Games agreed to a $100 million payment to settle a gender discrimination suit involving more than 2,000 female employees, some of whom still work for the company.
“We believe this is the right thing to do, for both the company and those whose experiences at Riot fell short of our standards and values,” the company said in a statement.
Riot, which launched popular League of Legends and Valorant game titles, initially faced a $10 million class-action suit before it was blocked by state employment agencies in California. Those agencies argued on behalf of the current and former employees of Riot that they were entitled to a larger sum.
Riot Games is owned by Tencent, a Chinese internet company. Its League of Legends title made over $2 billion in revenue in 2020, according to Nielsen’s gaming division.
At least 2,300 employees and contractors who worked for Riot dating to 2014 would share $80 million if a settlement is ultimately approved, and $20 million in legal fees and services would be directed to the costs associated with bringing the case to court.
But the sum, if approved, is 10 times higher than the original settlement target and now pending approval of the State of California Supreme Court.
Investigations in California were launched after employees alleged Riot Games was guilty of sexual harassment, discrimination, unequal pay and retaliation against women.
–Field Level Media
