Hasbro Refuses to Recognize Unions at Wizards of the Coast

Let's sample writings about games in places other than this site:

▪️ On Rascal, Chase Carter and Lin Codega write about "crunch culture and creative oppression within Wizards of the Coast" following Hasbro's refusal to voluntarily recognize two new unions formed by the team that works on Dungeons & Dragons and the "Studio X" team that oversees Magic: The Gathering and Duel Masters.

In April 2026, more than one hundred workers on the MTG Arena team had informed Hasbro that they were forming a union — United Wizards of the Coast — but Hasbro refused to voluntarily recognize the union and hired "one of the country's better-known union-avoidance law firms" to deluge Arena staff with anti-union messages before they would hold an official National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) vote to form a union on 2 June 2026. That vote succeeded, but apparently Hasbro is hoping that November 2026 votes on these new union efforts will fail.

Despite Wizards of the Coast driving up Hasbro's revenue year after year, as was evident in its 2025 financial results, employees feel like they could be let go at any point, on top of seeing no benefits for their past efforts. Rascal quotes Vanessa Hoskins, a producer for D&D, as follows:

"There's still not enough money to pay for various things, whether that be more headcount for a team, better healthcare options, parental support… Almost all of the things on our list lead back to requests that we've made of management and heard them say, No, there's nothing we can do about it. We're sorry. Often those decisions are tied to there being no money, while we continue to make record breaking revenue year over year."

Another concern is Hasbro's effort to claim employees' creative work during their free time:

The inclusion of "inventor clauses" in WotC work contracts caused a brief stir amongst players and fans when UWOTC published the latest union letters. Effectively, Hasbro can claim ownership of creative works made by employees during their off hours. And while it doesn't seem that the company has directly enforced this clause, Hoskins explained that its mere existence "has put a stranglehold on our creatives who don't feel like their free time is their own." This isn't something that is unique to Hasbro; Disney has famously included similar clauses in their contracts for decades. But existing as a 'semi-standard' across creative industries doesn't make it right.

▪️ On the topic of making "record breaking revenue year over year", on 20 October 2026 Hasbro released its Q3 2026 financial results, with the top line on the press release being this:

Magic: The Gathering Surpasses $600 million in Quarterly Revenue for First Time

I imagine this news will only solidify the need for unions by those two Hasbro teams: We're making all this money for the boss, and what do we get in return? Job uncertainty, and a non-stop push to do more with less. To continue:

"Inspiring a lifetime of play is our superpower, and this quarter showed what it can do," said Chris Cocks, Hasbro Chief Executive Officer. "We delivered a fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth, and Magic: The Gathering topped $600 million in quarterly revenue for the first time. Our asset-light licensing model lets great partners extend our brands while we focus on what we do best. With a Magic lineup that keeps building, we expect a strong finish to 2026 and continued growth in 2027."

"This quarter again showed the power of Hasbro's brand portfolio paired with strong execution," said Gina Goetter, Hasbro Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer. "Given this momentum, we are raising our 2026 outlook and doubling our share repurchase target for the year, balancing investment in the business with returning cash to shareholders."

And a few bullet points from that press release:

• Hasbro, Inc.'s revenue increased 15% vs. LY, driven by growth in Wizards and Digital Gaming (+31%), Consumer Products (+4%), and Entertainment (+9%). (Within the "Wizards and Digital Gaming" category, Magic: The Gathering grew by 34%, while digital and licensed gaming grew 3%.
• Operating profit was $517 million and Adjusted operating profit was$541 million(+52% vs. LY), reflecting topline momentum, favorable mix and cost productivity.
• Results include approximately $55 million of tariff refunds.
• Year-to-date Hasbro, Inc. revenue increased 15% vs. LY, driven by growth in Wizards and Digital Gaming (+28%) and Consumer Products (+3%), partially offset by a decline in Entertainment (-13%).
• Year-to-date operating profit was $1,040 million and Adjusted operating profit was $1,110 million (+35% vs. LY), reflecting a strong topline. Both figures include a $56 million impairment related to digital games, nearly offset by a $55 million benefit from tariff refunds. (Rebekah Valentine at Kotaku detailed this $56 million impairment in July 2026. As for tariff refunds, well, I guess this falls into the concept of privatizing profits while socializing losses.)

▪️ On Global Toy News, Mirek Stolee, a curator at The Strong National Museum of Play, writes about an aspect of board game culture that most people do for fun, not work: bagging components. An excerpt:

When we add an object to our collections, we accept responsibility for it in perpetuity. Even games that seem ubiquitous now may not be nearly as accessible decades down the line. But the variety of tactile materials that bring board gamers such delight can make preservation difficult. All materials degrade over a long enough time scale, but this does not happen at the same rate or with the same effects. I'm no conservator, but I have encountered the stickiness of deteriorating plastic and the frustrating crustiness of old rubber bands (please don't wrap your cards in rubber bands). While players might accelerate setup by storing plastic miniatures and cards in the same bag, the game curator of the year 2200 will curse my name if I make them pry gooey plastic from cardstock. So, I separate the pieces by material so that they do not disrupt each other's degradation processes. Easy. Cards in one bag, painted wooden tokens in another, maybe a third for plastic bits. Rulebooks and advertisements for other games get placed in nice mylar sleeves.

Hmm, storing plastic miniatures and cards in the same bag "might accelerate setup". I would argue otherwise.

▪️ Following promotional events with the Minnesota Timberwolves basketball team and the rock band Linkin Park, the newest CATAN marketing crossover is with Füchse Berlin, which CATAN publisher KOSMOS describes as "one of Germany's most successful handball clubs". From the press release announcing this partnership: "Whenever Füchse heads out for an away game, this beloved board game is a staple in the players' bags — it is rare for an evening on the road to pass without a spirited game-night showdown."

Another excerpt from the press release:

The partnership focuses not only on visibility and branding, but above all on interactive experiences centered around home games. Planned activities include a "CATAN Connect" event featuring the team and fans, a "CATAN Trading Frenzy" during a home game, as well as prize draws and other engaging activities in the arena.