Board "Memo": Quality of Life Update - April '09

Dear Members,

The Board of the IGDA firmly supports the Quality of Life initiatives and "best practices" outlined in the IGDA's 2004 report on the topic. The White Paper can be downloaded for free at http://www.igda.org/qol/whitepaper.php.

More specifically, and so there can be no doubt:

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We believe, and it has been well documented, that extensive overtime is not only ineffective from the point of view of productivity, but moreover is destructive of employee morale. Our Quality of Life Committee has collected significant research (http://www.igda.org/qol/resources.php#improve) to support this conclusion.
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We believe that companies have an obligation to inform prospective employees of their overtime policies prior to their employment.
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We believe it is unethical for studios to routinely rely on extended, uncompensated overtime in order to get their products out the door.

The Board is happy to announce that our Quality of Life Committee is transforming itself into a Special Interest Group, which we believe will revitalize the IGDA's efforts to educate the industry on the challenges surrounding this issue. The SIG is in the process of assembling two new surveys, one for Studios and one for Developers. Those interested in participating in the SIG should write to qol@igda.org.

The Board will be posting updates on this initiative and other new actions by and for IGDA members on its new blog at igdaboard.wordpress.com.

Sincere regards,

Bob Bates
IGDA Chair
bob -at- igda.org