Candy Crush Studio King Workers Set to Strike This Week Over Union Contract

Workers at King, the studio behind Candy Crush Saga, are preparing to walk off the job this week as a long-running dispute over a collective bargaining agreement reaches a critical point.

Unionized employees at King’s Stockholm and Malmö offices are scheduled to begin strike action at 5 a.m. on Friday, September 25, unless the company and unions reach an agreement through ongoing mediation.

The dispute follows more than a year of negotiations over a collective agreement. Unionen and Sveriges Ingenjörer issued the strike notice after King declined to sign an agreement, saying its existing employment terms were fair and competitive.

Several other Swedish unions, including Naturvetarna, DIK and Akademikerförbundet SSR, have also announced sympathy strike action in support of the King workers.

The unions say a collective agreement would give employees greater influence over workplace conditions and provide clearer rules around issues including employment terms, pensions, insurance and working hours. King, meanwhile, has maintained that its current benefits and employment conditions are appropriate.

The timing comes as King faces a broader restructuring within Microsoft's gaming business. The company was among the Xbox units affected by Microsoft's major gaming reorganization earlier this year, while King and Mojang were subsequently placed under direct reporting to Xbox chief Asha Sharma.

With the deadline now only days away, mediation could still prevent the walkout. If no agreement is reached, however, King workers in Sweden are set to strike Friday morning.