There’s a lot of class action lawsuits going around in the gaming world as of late, from Magic judges to now it looks like conventions. Come see the latest
First off if you haven’t heard about the big Magic Judge class action lawsuit, read up on it here (“Are ‘Magic’ Judges Employees?”).
In summary, Magic judges are disputing the fact they are “volunteers” and are instead de-facto employees of Wizards of the Coast / Hasbro.
Well now that notion has seemed to spread like wildfire to the Convention scene, and the first Comic Con has now come under fire.
ICv2 ran the story this morning about it. Here’s the highlights:
A class action lawsuit has been filed against the organizers of Seattle convention Emerald City Comicon for using volunteer labor to support the show.
The suit alleges that volunteers were not paid for their time, overtime, and break periods and were not paid the minimum wage, and asks for double the back wages, interest, costs and fees.
Something to remember however as they pointed out towards the end of the article:
Of course some shows, such as San Diego Comic-Con and Wondercon, are operated by non-profits and can use volunteers. But for-profit shows that use volunteers may find themselves on the wrong end of a lawsuit.
So are conventions the next target in the legal cross hairs? Maybe, maybe not. Most of the tabletop gaming scene’s events are by the book as far as I’ve seen, but we never truly knows when someone will get that entitlement itch do we?
What’s the best advice for our industry? Well I think for the most part everything is nominal, this whole trend may just be isolated to the bigger shows and cons like comics that are a bit more mainstream. However I think if Games Workshop is serious about getting back into organized play again, that they take a close look at this one for sure!
Is a New 8th Edition 40k Really on The Horizon? – Long War Podcast Episode 52
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures.
Rob also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at the Las Vegas Open, each of which attracts thousands of players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the 2011 Adepticon 40k Team Tournament. He was even featured for his painting in issue #304 of Games Workshop’s White Dwarf Magazine.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), he advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1980s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
