Zynga’s social gaming network is going gangbusters right now, reportedly pushing nine figures in revenue. But the company’s legal woes continue. A former Zynga employee named Robert Fulop has filed suit against the popular social gaming company for violating the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), the California statute that prevents employee discrimination.
The suit alleges that Zynga has discriminated aginst Fulop on the basis of age and disability, namely those tied to his request to temporarily reduce his work load in the time leading up to and following a heart operation. Fulop is seeking a total of $50,000 in lost compensation and general damages, along with further damages whose amount will be determined at trial. I’ve summarized the suit below and embedded the full document. It’s important to note that the suit obviously paints Zynga in a poor light (the company wouldn’t comment) so keep in mind that it is only one side of the story.
The suit revolves around the termination of Fulop a few months after he began working full time at Zynga, and soon after he informed the company that he would need some time off to undergo a heart procedure. According to the document, Fulop is a long-time game designer with over 30 years in the industry whose career began at Atari in 1979. He was recruited to join Zynga as a contractor from early August 2008 through late September, when he was brought on with Zynga as a full time employee.
A month later he began suffering chest pains (he had a prior heart attack in 2005) and went to the hospital for testing. Fulop notified his team leader that he would need to work from home and part-time for the weeks leading up to and following the operation. Nine days later, Fulop was terminated from that game’s team. According to the document, whether or not he was terminated from the company entirely remained unclear for weeks (he underwent his heart procedure in the mean time). He was terminated from the company soon after the operation.
From the document:
“… As soon as Plantiff informed Zynga of his medical condition and his need for accommodation, he was immediately terminated. Plaintiff’s request for accommodations was summarily ignored without any discussion whatsoever.”
“As a pretext for the termination, Plaintiff was informed that he was being terminated because there was no work for him. This pretext is belied by the fact that Plaintiff was terminated approximately five weeks after he was hired as an employee and by the fact that immediately after Plaintiff was terminated, Zynga sought to hire another person for Plaintiff’s exact position”
This isn’t Zynga’s only legal trouble. In February, the creator of Mob Wars sued the company for copyright infringement (Zynga’s game, Mafia Wars, is very similar).
The timing of it all will determine whether Zynga is guilty or not but it doesn’t look good for them at all…tsk tsk tsk.
Good for Rob. We know Rob well and he is a hell of a guy. On the flip side, all we have heard are terrible things about the work enviroment with Zynga. This is not surprising in the least. Go get em’ Rob!
I have worked at Zynga for over a year and worked on the Poker team with Rob. Neither Rob, nor anyone else, was fired due to any health reason. In fact at least two Zynga employees whom I have worked with had to take signifigant medical leaves of abscensce – one of whom was in a motorcycle accident on I-80 which totaled his bike, and another who had a baby. Both were welcomed back to work when they were able to return. Zynga does not and has not fired anyone for health reasons.
Yeah there have been some growing pains, and the company has struggled with org issues – but when a company grows as fast as Zynga it’s sort of to be expected. Have some people had bad experiences? Sure, but I’m sure there are people who worked at Google who think it was a crappy place to work (in fact at least one of my friends said that about her position there), but clearly there are also lots of people who think working there is pretty cool – the same could be said for Zynga.
Personally, I like working there. I’m especially happy that the company has learned and continues to learn from it’s past as it improves it’s org structure and processes, which had been a primary source of frustration. The meaning of “titles” gets very interesting in that reguard – at a startup no one has any titles, and then as the company grows and hires people they want to know what their “title” is. It’s interesting. And, as I have told this to everyone whom I have interviewed, everyone – from art to product to pm to engineering – has a voice that gets heard when we design the game. Of course not everyone’s ideas get incorporated into everything, but everyone has a hand in guiding their product (”We should add a button that does this!” “Seems like a confusing user experience, what about doing something like this?” “Are you sure those stats are going to get you the data you want? What about this stat instead?”). Anyway, that’s rambling, but yeah I think Zynga is a good place to work.
OK, as experience (and XKCD) have taught me, arguing on the internet is a pointless exercise, so I’m gonna cut it there. But to reiterate, neither Rob, nor anyone else, was let go for health reasons.
Nice try. You managed to say a whole lot about nothing. I don’t think anyone believes you though.
Sounds like an HR plant.
Pincus is cool, just needs to hire better people and not promote morons. I used to work for Yoville under Thor Alexander. I would have to say this guy is toxic waste. From the get go this guy did nothing but make my life miserable. I worked long hours and at every point he just smugly threw more work my way and said “Why isn’t this done?”. According to Thor, the criteria for being a good manager is if the CEO likes him and he is willing to step on any of his staff to make that happen. I was just one person he stepped on and I probably won’t be the last.
Thankfully not all of zynga is riddled with parasites like Thor. However the motto at Zynga seems to be geared towards breeding pond scum like him. Rob probably was a victim of such a manager. Sorry Rob. I pray you get well soon.
So here I am, casually looking up my old friend Thor and came across this site. First off, sucks that zynga would fire someone like this. The proper way is to wait at least 2 months or so before firing them.
But I digress, to something more fun to discuss.
I’ve worked with Mr. Alexander at metaplace and we’ve had our fair share of conversations. He is a funny guy that really doesn’t have a clue of what he talks or writes about. Look at his article in AI game programming wisdom if you get a chance. I had a discussion with him once on Q learning and statistical modeling, and he went on so many tangents that just made me wonder how this jackass ever wrote an article about machine learning.
Thor, buddy… you really need to change up your game… Here’s some advice from someone who’s still a friend, lay low… squeak by… and reap the benefits of other people’s hard work… oh wait! those were lessons that I learned from you.
Take care buddy. Only a matter of time before you’ll have to switch jobs again. People eventually wise up to the fact that you are just paid for your lip service. Anyone from zynga reading this, watch out for him, he’s a cancer to any company he joins… but at least he has a sense of humor.
What zinga has been doing has been impressive, However the market has to bottom out for them soon, in the mean time people like Rob will get screwed. Happens usually with companies that focus their efforts on expansion rather than solidifying a base first.
BTW also had the displeasure of working with thor at EA too, that bald headed joke wouldn’t know the first thing about development if it hit him in the head. Zinga needs to get better interviewers if they let that idiot through the door. Hes a shitty DD, all he did was play with excel when he wasn’t surfing the web. Everyone on the MoH team disliked him, no surprise to see his rep follow him. He would play the game, point out things that he thought should be fixed and would pretty much act like he was doing all the heavy lifting. Utterly useless and a waste of space.
Anyway, hope Zinga gets zinged on this lawsuit.
Thor is an idiot. Worked along side him at EA LA, which I believe he was fired from. Any company that harbors such a loser for more than a few months is probably just waiting to go under.
Thor is an alright guy, knew him at EA like a few of these boys that are hating. You just have to realize that most producer types are morons (yes thor, that means you!). Once you realize that, you can look past his crude, fat ugly exterior and see him for what he really is.. an alright guy.
I love working here. I think apart from the benefits, IMO, Mark really does want to create the best social games company. From healthy food, to regular lunch and dinners, to haircuts/massages/nutritionists… I think Zynga is by far one of the best companies I have worked for, and that wouldn’t be the case if Mark didn’t care.
With respect to Thor, … heh, no comment.
lame. companies that treat their employees like shit are shit. so lame and transparent
well said
Could not agree more. The behavior described in the story is simply unacceptable.
One of my friends shared something very shocking with me. Apparently her employer was not paying her monthly salary leave aside the additional expense. Unfortunately, there are employers who pay their employees ONLY on the books, to deduct Income Tax.
And there are employers who do not keep employees on the books at all.
I smell punitive damage!
Total bullshit. Why do companies have to treat people like this?? I hope they have to pay through the nose. Jerks.
i’ve heard some awful stories of employee abuse at zynga. i don’t think this will be the last law suit. it’s a shame… they’re making so much money, but can’t be humane to their employees.
Yup,
I agree with you. Do not know much about this company. However, I have heard of the cases where companies have labeled ‘young pretty women’ working with or under them as ‘call girls’ when these women refuse the s*xual offers.
Seems rough
Sad story
Appears as though, at times you pay premium for the looks.
Thanks for reporting this. I don’t use their site now and will avoid them in the future.
I like how these news are all over the Twitter feed that sits prominently on their own home page… “Come work for us! Come work for us!”
settle now no way they win with this type of sad story.
I would never work for that idiot. They wanted me to join that dump, i left on mids of interview. bunch of fuckheads. Hope their asses get sued into oblivion and yes it was told they stillhave 27mil in the bank.. go Rob go.
Go get em! I’ve heard horrible things about zynga’s work environment, this doesn’t surprise me at all.
must have been a Mafia Wars employee? See there are risks….
Nope, it was for their poker game.
Funny, they’re hiring IT peeps these days. Check CL.
When I saw the name I first wondered if this was the same Rob Fulop who did “Demon Attack” back in 1982. The reference to 1979 makes me think it’s the same Rob Fulop.
Demon Attack – what a game for a home console in 1982
btw, small typo – “whose carrer began” should be “whose career began”.
Looks like the same person according to his website:
http://www.robf...newsite/bio.htm
Hello – World!
zynga sucks! I created an account, requesting zynga to install games to my new social network site(www.ewebpals.com) and they did not reply! Also, they terminated my account.
Can anyone help?
Best Regards.
ummm your URL say ew at the front… might start by changing that.. and honestly who needs another social network that doesn’t even use openID ot Facebook friends connect… I would take the money you have left… buy some booze and hookers and have a blast.. even zynga can’t help you…
Your sentence starts with ummm! I’m stupid!
That is so weak.. really you can do better than that… bring some pizzazzzz Rupaul…
Where’s the link to your API? I’m thinking SuperPoke could do wonders for your site in terms of annoying the hell out of your users.
-Max
Did you look at the site? how many users do you think he has…?
Well, based on the “recent members” thing on the right, looks like he’s his own biggest fan.
why would I need an API? You’re kind of an idiot! Right?
Please. The timing reads as if this guy signed on with Zynga just so he could get some medical benefits and promptly require paid leave. Hey, why not stick it to a company you just joined a few weeks ago? Feels like when a woman takes an important new job in a growing startup and promptly decides to get pregnant and start working half-days. You’re protected by the law, good for you — the rest of us will carry your slack.
I so agree with this!!! why the hell you take the offer and not say anything before-hand that you have an upcoming surgery??? I’m pretty sure you can start a month after… what a shitty/cheap person who blames everything on a company… he sure signed on just to get benefits and slack… so he can get paid! what a LOSER!
I so agree with this!! It was a wicked plan! It’s so obvious that he planned to have his heart attack months in advance! Obviously he joined Zynga so he could have his heart attack there and take advantage of poor Zynga. He probably faked his heart attack!! What a LOSER! Zynga, you did the right thing!!
Gonna have to agree with you on this one. The nature of heart attacks is that they’re unpredictable. You can’t plan to have one at a certain time. It’s not like getting pregnant. And, it’s life threatening and has to be dealt with immediately. A heart attack doesn’t care if you just got a job, just got married, just had a kid, or just sat down to take a shit. It will kick up and cuase you to have to go to the hospital anyway.
Was your mother on drugs when she came up with the names Gebadia and Max?
Probably.. but you know us crazies have more fun… come on be realistic.. the amount of money you would need compete in a non-niche social network is huge… it is not enough to get a person to sign up, you have to get their friends too… if you are going to integrate anything start with data portability because people are so overwhelmed by sign in forms and half of them are so fn annoying you want to huck your computer against the wall..
Did it ever occur to you that the site was just published a couple days ago… you fuckn Twit.
Did it ever occur to you to not spam tc if your site is not ready for prime time? People rip everyone in here…
Oct. 2009?
That document is from the future!!
I can’t speak for Rob or what happened to him , and certainly can’t speak for other employees, but I can speak for myself as an employee at Zynga.
And I have to say that reading other posts claiming rumors of employee abuse is laughable. I have never been treated so well at a company before and I have worked at two other extremely large game companies. I know I’m going to sound like a commercial, but I never would have been given the opportunities I’ve been given anywhere else. We constantly get rewarded for the work that we do not only with bonuses, vacations, team-outings, and other gifts, but through praise and recognition of a job well done.
Sure there are problems, like there are at any company let alone a new company. However, I’ve never seen upper management be so interested in fixing the current problems no matter how big or small at any of my previous jobs.
I honestly enjoy working at Zynga and just thought I should stand up and present another side of things if anyone was interested in hearing it.
Take care!
How about you guys stop all your iphone apps from crashing all day! learn how to program plz…
k thnx bye.
mower, you’re better than most PR people I know. every word so carefully placed. but it’s just a tad over the top. i mean has any employee in the history of the world ever heaped this much praise on a company??
Well, for starters if I was you and I heard about something as sickening as what is described in the story happened to my colleague, I would make damned sure to find out what happened. That’s basic human decency. But you chose to rush to Techcrunch and spend time choosing every word to confess your love to a company of questionable morale. Interesting choice, indeed.
2nd weak attempt to defend Zynga.
good for you mower!
is zynga really dead? I think that’s so funny.
Awww…dead animals are never funny! Unless it’s one of those hairless cats or Jessica Simpson’s dog.
Yes, Zinga is amongst the angels…
I hope the founder(s) get a stick up their ass to see how it feels to be played.
Ruppert, I think ewebpals is awesome man! Kudos, i think you should continue working on it, put everything you have into over the next few years and maybe it becomes the next facebook.
As you for, you are a steamy pile of feces.
Memo to Tech Crunch editors : this article could have been improved by the inclusion of a third party opinion from a legal and/or HR professional.
If this gets to court a jury will most definitely award PUNITIVE damages. Even if only 50% of the claims are true this is bad news for Zynga. What a shame considering my favorite VC firm (Union Square Ventures) is backing this company.
ted – it’s not a shame that USV is an investor in Zynga. they are doing some great things at the intersection of social nets and games, really leading and defining a new category – social gaming.
what’s a shame is that this is being debated in public without all the facts
as Jason said, “It’s important to note that the suit obviously paints Zynga in a poor light so keep in mind that it is only one side of the story.”
That is pretty horrible behavior.
Normally, I am pretty suspect of age discrimination lawsuits. But this one was really “Got Pretty Sick” discrimination.
They would have done the same to someone that got leukemia or a brain tumor. Or maybe someone in HR over there has got a brain tumor.
Zynga is to be wiped off your shoe if at all possible.
I have heard that Pincus is a bitch to work for, he has no respect for the soldiers and is an abusive a-hole and screams at people and belittles them publicly.
Heard this many times from many folk who have worked on the Pincus ship — he’s an arrogant rich dickhead and can’t be trusted even on the investor side — he’ll stick the knife in any chance he gets and has a small penis too.
Isn’t employment in CA supposed to be “at will” — meaning an employee can be terminated at any time for any reason whatsoever?
Not that I condone Zynga’s alleged behavior, however…
“at will” means a Good Reason, or No Reason, but not the wrong reason. As any manager who has to suffer through the bi-annual anti-harrasment training in California can attest, there are an endless number of _bad_ reasons to fire someone, both at the Federal Level (covering all states), as well as the Local Level (covering California). There are at least Thirteen reasons you _can’t_ fire someone in California, they are sex, gender, race, ancestry, national origin, color, sexual orientation, religion, _medical disability_, marital status, age (over 40), medical conditions, and refusal of family care leave.
At the federal level there is Race/Ethnicity, Color, Disability, Famlial Status, Gender, National Origin, and Religion.
It doesn’t seem alright that a person applied for long term medical leave within days of joining the company. But it can be genuine.
The company could have allowed Rob to go on upaid leave (assuming he was ok with it!!). This would have been the best solution. It doesnt make sense to ask the company to provide full-time paid leave in this case.
maybe you should read the complaint! he asked for UNPAID time off. UNPAID. And it was not long term. It was a couple weeks of UNPAID time off.
benefits are still there… he could of taken the offer after the surgery…. why before???? wasting people’s time.
By the way, employees should NOT think that it is their birthright to be employed by ANY company.
Linda,
I think law is pretty clear about what employes should or should not expect and if facts in the story are proved somebody will pay dearly, for sure.
Wow… I am a bit at a loss of words.
I’ve been at Zynga for a couple of months. Yes, it is VERY fast paced! Perhaps not everyone thrives in that type of environment?
The company I was at before Zynga (which will remain unnamed) was truly horrendous. I cried on the freeway most nights as I drove home. Believe me, I’m not one to cry.; I didn’t even cry when I was stabbed. That company was a nightmare.
Zynga saved me. The day I received my offer letter was the absolute best day of the decade, and it has not disappointed since.
More company bs, ooh zynga is so great, well it seems to me after reading the posts it likes ppl who dont question their shady tactics in dealing with ppl , oh but i forgot u are a victim froma worse company, so old adage give a starving man a cracker he thinks its a steak, yeah use that company bs on someone who is less intelligent
Pinkass is the biggest self obsessed loser I’ve met. I’m surprised he’s not building porn sites he’s such a rat for money.
Agreed. Pincus is a self-serving sicko and will stick the knife in his own mother if it means getting another buck or two.
Working for him is like being in a Nazi concentration camp.
If Bing Gordon walked this guy in, that is huge….the guy was / is obviously a super-star of some kind, and as they say “shit happens” — why punish the guy for a little angina?
Angina of course rhymes with vagina, and Pincus is a big smelly one.
As a Current Zynga employee I cannot believe the things people are posting here.
Zynga is the kind of work environment that brings the best out of all employees. We expect the best out of every employee and in return Zynga has given much back to the employees who have helped Zynga along the way. As the Senior Tech Lead in the Mafia group I have seen many people try to join our work environment and fail. It is not a place for everyone as the expectations for performance are much higher than any startup I have worked for before. Employees are expected to be big contributers within their first couple months or they will considered dead weight. This has absolutely nothing to do with medical leaves, as I myself have taken multiple days off for medical reasons.
One of the producers in our studio was only working at Zynga for about a month when he was involved in a motorcycle accident that kept him out of the office for weeks and then limited his abilities to work for over 2 months. He was not fired. In fact he was promoted and has since flourished in his duties. Zynga is a merit based company and we stress employee’s abilities first and foremost.
Zynga is not a place that merits people on their past successes either. Where you were previously or what games you have created before do not matter once you step into our studios.
We have had employees who have been wildly successful at gaming companies throughout the 80’s and 90’s, but not be successful at Zynga. The environment and culture is not the same as with other game companies. We are faster moving and our products change from week to week. With multiple releases and milestones per week, some people cannot keep up. In the console world you ship 1 product in a few years. Here we ship products in a month. Some people need the slow paced environments and extreme rigidity that the established companies provide. Zynga is not the place for that. Zynga is a place for the best engineers to work with the brightest managers to create some very unique and creative features and games.
In all I have been working with Zynga since we were just 70 employees and still figuring out where we stood in the social gaming gaming market, and seen it grow now to over 200 employees and a leader in the industry. I have not once seen any discriminatory hiring or firing practices. I work as much or more than most employees in our studio and I can say we are not a sweat shop like people are claiming. The employees at Zynga have a passion for the games they make and this leads them to the extended hours and weekend work. It’s not that we are forced to work like this, it’s that we want to work like this so that we can be the best and make the best games.
Regardless of how great a place Zynga may be to work, they are screwed here, plain and simple. The punitive damages could and should run in the millions of dollars.
Here’s why:
The employee in question was offered a job only AFTER working on site as a full time contractor for two months prior to him coming on board. And this fact creates a gigantic problem with any possible defense that Zynga will attempt to put up here claiming that it wasn’t a “fit” or whatever reason they insist led to the employees termination.
Obviously the employee’s first few months there while on probation went well and the employee was considered a ‘big contributor’, which is why he was subsequently hired in a key role. Only after he became ill was he immediately terminated without any opportunity to correct the “problem” if indeed there was a problem other than his illness.
The timing just smells bad, really really bad, and Zynga will have to cough up a lot of money here, regardless of how great they are to work for. There are rules in place which govern the rights of employees. In this case, it sure sounds like Zynga management made some very unfortunate choices of how to deal with the situation, and without regard for the consequences of such.
Dutch:
“The employees at Zynga have a passion for the games they make and this leads them to the extended hours and weekend work. It’s not that we are forced to work like this,”
“Employees are expected to be big contributers within their first couple months or they will considered dead weight.”
Seems to be kind of a contradiction there.
_________________________________
As for Parizad – your post comes across as the kind of immature mentality you have already shown in your status as moderator on Zynga forums.
When forum users have shown you proof of personal abuse via PM from your moderating team, you have responded by banning the user.
The article does not need to show Zynga in a bad light, they are doing that all by themselves.
———————————-
I’m a big fan of “if you don’t like working somewhere, then leave”. However, there is a difference between a company having a style of working which may not suit everybody, and being morally reprehensible.
They may be great for some, but they shot themselves in the foot with this one.
I agree with your comments and yes Parizad is the biggest proponent of perpetuating abuse by the moderating team on the forum. It is really sad that a company has to treat its customer base like prisoners of war in a damn concentration camp. “you do what we say and if we wrong you we will ban you and shut you up” LOL way to go Parizad you and Pincus should procreate and make some more scum suckers that will treat ppl horribly when they reach adulthood.
Has anyone actually paused to think about was this employee any good? This article looks like it was written by Rob’s personal PR firm. He hasn’t worked on a title of significance for over 15 years according to his credits on mobygames
jack may be onto something…maybe rob did hire TC to be his personal PR firm… i didn’t know that TC was available for that kind of work…and wow jack even took the time to personally research rob’s background…
Listen You fukung idiots. What difference does it make that he accepted a position with a heart condition?!! He’s paying for the ducking insurance benefits you stupid jackasses. Moreover, why the hell would you offer nenefits to your employees at all if this were such a problem? If the company were so concerned about this non issue then they could implement a 60 day waiting period. But they did not. The fact he had a preexusting condition is totally irrelevant. They didn’t ask him and if they did it wouldve been illegal. Also, if the company hired him and isn’t bother to tell him they were insolvent would you personally be pointing the finger at Poncahontas I mean Poncus, I mean pontius Pilate Pincus?
His condiion was not life threatening and could be accommodted with ease. This unfortunately is the reason why we need universal healthcare. The fact that someone as nefarious and immoral as Zyngas board is responsible for your life care is utterly inhuman. That power makes workers tantamount to slaves.
Zyngas CEO is legendary for being an obsessive micromanager and an ammoral egomaniacal cruel sob. The list of former employees and former associates is long. No one and I repeat no one is surprised zynga is being sued. The only surprise is that is hasn’t happened sooner.
Rob take it to them. These people are callous, manipulating liars. Self serving, double dealing frauds who’d sooner kill you than admit wrong doing.
Dispicable but utterly foreseeable and sadly expected given the nature of the investors in zynga. Trace the personal connections and you find a trial of tears wherever these folks turn out.
I know of a few people that Zynga let go weeks before their stock options were to come to fruition. These people worked hard, put in long hours, and did good work and “coincidently” were terminated when $ was just about to come their way. I wouldn’t be surprised if other lawsuits are imminent. I know of other pending lawsuits revolving around games created by others that have been heisted by Zynga, renamed and cashed in on. Karma is catching up to these guys and time will show just how bad a situation Zynga has created for itself.
Damn… who runs this company, the Tramiels?
Good on you, Rob. You’ll win and this pathetic company and their slave-labor ways of doing business and employee relations will be out of business.
Sounds like Zynga has a great business opportunity and yet is a train wreck waiting to happen.
I’ve read the complaint. Does not look good for Zynga and if some of the other allegations are true (i.e. firing weeks before option vesting etc.) this could and will mushroom into a class action lawsuit.
Here’s the piece TechCrunch is missing:
I know Rob, and he did NOT sign up for Zynga’s health insurance when he became an employee. He stayed on his wife’s because her insurance was better for them.
Anyone saying he joined to take Zynga’s benefits can kiss that argument goodbye. The case is clear.
yeah, obviously you’re his friend and writing this to back his shitty ass up.
but it does back the story up in regards to skimming benefits…
There is something seriously wrong with Mark Pinkus. He owns over 9 million shares of Zynga, owns 1.5 million share of Facebook and has a track record of screwing people over for what amounts to pennies from his perspective. Let’s hope that good prevails over evil.
Wow! It has been fascinating to read all of these comments. I have no personal experience with Zynga, but what I have learned from reading the article and all of the comment is:
1. Zynga has very few supporters here. I’d say about 10-1 against.
2. Zynga blundered in the termination, and there probably needs to be an executive level “reassignment”.
3. Zynga has a definite PR problem that, if ignored, will affect the quality of future employees who choose whether to work there, and could spill over affecting consumer demand.
4. I would sure love to be Steven Choi, Mr. Fulop’s attorney. This sure looks like a slam dunk.
5. Zynga should have at least come out with a “damage control” press release.
6. There appear to be a few former Zynga employees or acquaintances of employees commenting here, and what they are saying is all highly negative.
Interesting to see how this works out. I just IM’ed Mr. Fulop to please come help my startup company, and I do wish him well, and hope things get better at Zynga.
better becareful before he has another HEART ATTACK after working 3 days…
and it won’t affect its user base one bit… which is the funny thing…. cause nobody cares about some employee that got fired..
I agree with your analysis, Paul.
I am yet another friend of several former Zynga employees. I have heard horror stories beyond anything you can imagine. Sure, they have chefs making lunch for their employees but trust me, that’s all smoke and mirrors. Zynga’s management has a history of screwing its employees in every way possible. I have heard Mark Pincus described as manic, hateful, pathological, and narcissistic. He apparently throws random fits, screaming and cursing and acting out of control. The atmosphere there has been described as highly toxic. I know people who, even in this down economy, have jumped ship without having another job lined up because of the horrible work environment. Time for the Board to get their heads out of their collective asses. With people like Pincus at the helm, Zynga is going to crash and burn before you can say, GUILTY!
How much did they pay you to write that, Mower and Dutch?
This is a notoriously difficult place to work at, and a few people named in the suit are some of the worst personalities you can come across in a work environment, and that is why regardless of whether or not this suit is won or lost, they had this coming.
Many of us were offered salary and a certain amount of stock when we joined. 11 months after I joined, I went to check on the stock because I was close to my 1 year vest. They said I didn’t get any. How f**ked up is that? I trusted Zynga and they abused that trust.
From what I hear other people have been screwed similarly. Mark Pincus is the shadiest character I have ever met.
@ex
While that rather sucks, it also seems that being ‘offered stock’ would entail getting some paper documentation on day 1, not in month 11. This should be a warning to anyone else who’s ‘offered stock’ as a means to come on board someplace. Get it in writing and get the paperwork done ASAP.
Hey everyone, my name is Blake. I have been an employee of Zynga for three months now. I have nothing but positive things to say about Zynga; and nothing but sincere respect for the individuals who make the operation possible. I got a job with Zynga shortly after graduating from UC Davis (studied Economics).
I was hired as a contract employee to perform various tasks for the iphone team. I was stoked just to land a gig in this job market – not to mention I had been an avid gamer since duck hunt. Looking back, I guess I have been a social gamer all along.
What excited me even more was my first day on the job. I walked into an office buzzing with energy and inspiration. I got the vibe that everyone had specific roles to fill for an ultimate goal – and if they could do that, they would be compensated fairly. We all felt very appreciated.
My initial tasks were somewhat remedial, but I enjoyed doing ANYTHING in the office because of the atmosphere. I also knew that how minor the task may seem was irrelevant. The most important tasks could not be completed without the building blocks. I always tried to exceed expectations and never put my name on something that wasn’t my best work. One day, I was asked if I wanted to make a game-demo video for the upcoming release of Scramble Live. Remembering a time during my childhood when Chad (my neighbor) and I would try to write down EVERYTHING you had to do to beat Donkey Kong, I accepted the task. I had already played a LOT of Scramble in preparation for launch, so I had a plethora of ideas to communicate the games features. I finished the video, editing included, in about 4 hours. Most of the shots were just one take. It turned out that the casual, one take, approach fit with Zynga culture. Shortly after the first video, I took up the alias ‘1 Take Blake.’ Truth be told, I’ve ALWAYS wanted to be involved in the film and entertainment industry. I was able to blend my passion for film making with my addiction to video games. All the while I was getting paid to do what I love!
Since then, I have made 4 more videos for Zynga – and really feel like they are appreciated. My goal is to make a video for every department of Zynga – really focusing on the team dynamic. I love to include my co-workers in my work, because without them, I would not be doing it. I wake up every day grateful that I am living the dream.
I aspire to be Zynga’s go-to guy for video and other creative media needs. I am proud to say I am a Zynga employee, and also believe that everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I guess it is not abnormal that bad press about companies seem to correlate to their level of success. There will always be haters. I accept that. I have always worked my ass of to reach success while maintaining my integrity. I can sleep at night comfortable with every decision I have ever made. Despite that, I have never gone a week without hearing somebody else’s negative energy. ‘Blake, you can’t do that because…” or “It’s impossible to reach THAT level of sucess without sacrificing your morals.” I shrug it off. The recent wave of negative press about Zynga – in a way – feels like an accomplishment. I realize that when society does not understand something, they will form speculations. Go ahead everybody, speculate about how Zynga continues to expand; continues to build out new departments and positions (like mine); and to remain profitable. I guess we just figured it out before the rest of you. But please RESPECT our business. We will always respect yours. We will continue to connect the world through games. They are fun as heck, you should try them! And smile.
Anyone and everyone is encouraged to link up with me online. You can friend/message me on facebook. You can follow me on Twitter (One Take Blake)
BUT!!! Please do not waste your time sending me Zynga hate mail. It will be deleted/marked as spam immediately. I am open to conversation with any open mind. I know that (deleting the messages right away) might be perceived as close-minded. But I just don’t have time to deal with people who have their mind made up on something I don’t agree with. I have way too much FUN work to do!
Mark Pincus – Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for making this possible. Rather, making it possible for US to make this possible.
Email me at blake@zynga.com OR 1takeblake@gmail.com
iPhone Mafia Wars
Level: 180
Mafia Size: 168
Hourly Property Income: $1,352,415
Attack Power: 2433
Defese Power: 2581
Friend Code 7501 4350 66
I also play YoVille (YoBlake), Guild of Heroes, Scramble, Live Poker, and Vampire Wars. (But I would accept a challenge to ANY Zynga Game!)
Brutally Honest,
Blake Loftus Jamieson
Congrats on your first job not flipping burgers, meat. Welcome to the real world I am positive in time you will get thrown under a bus and say “damn i was so stupid for being naive”. Grow up and open your eyes.
If you don’t like Zynga feel free to leave – why whine? They are not forcing you to work there.
People should STOP thinking that they have birth-right to A JOB, ANY JOB.
Irrespective of the merits of the case, all the comments here are clearly one-sided; the main reason for this is – employees far out-number employers – and therefore their voice is loud in the din.
If there were no employers, there would be no employees. Be grateful.
And if you believe you have right to a job, go and join the government/public sector – and spend your time lazing/dozing doing nothing.
Linda, you’re comment is a joke, and is just inflammatory nonsense.
He doesn’t have to leave. They fired him unjustly.
He doesn’t feel he has a birthright to a job. He feels that he is guaranteed by US law to not be fired from a job for needing a heart operation. If you got pregnant and let your boss know, then got fired a week later, what would you do? Just bend over and take it or do something about it?
Your argument that customers have a louder voice is a bit ridiculous. Customers may have a louder voice because there are more of them, but companies have all the money, so other people in positions of authority tend to listen to them.
“If there were no employers, there would be no employees. Be grateful”
Are you stupid? Being paid for services is almost as old as man. How could there NOT be employers and employees? This reasoning just doesn’t have any solid footing to stand on in respect to the current argument.
“And if you believe you have right to a job, go and join the government/public sector – and spend your time lazing/dozing doing nothing.”
I spent 8 years working for the US government. It was called The Army. Sure, I spent some time with my feet up and joking with my friends. I also spent six months straight in a combat zone in Iraq in 2003, and a year straight in 2007-2008.
Bradley,
If you employed a cook, and the day he joined he informed you that he needs to take 2 months off to take care of his health.
Your thoughts would be:
1. Why did the cook not inform about this before joining?
2. The cook could have joined after two months. Isn’t it?
3. Even if the case was genuine, you would still feel short-changed, having to look for a new cook for two-months, and at the same time being forced to keep the job-open for the previous cook.
In all probabilty, you would thank the cook for one day of service, pay him some money, and ask him to take care of himself – but you would not wait for him! You would employ another cook. You want to eat, right?
When it suits people they always invoke clever arguments about ‘required by law’. You are also required by common-sense to do-work, which not everyone does.
“The suit revolves around the termination of Fulop a few months after he began working full time at Zynga”
He had been working for them for quite a few months in a permanent capacity before his need arose. He had also worked with them before this in a contract position.
“3. Even if the case was genuine, you would still feel short-changed, having to look for a new cook for two-months, and at the same time being forced to keep the job-open for the previous cook.”
It doesn’t matter how short-changed they felt. The law is the law.
“In all probabilty, you would thank the cook for one day of service, pay him some money, and ask him to take care of himself – but you would not wait for him! You would employ another cook. You want to eat, right?”
Again, he worked for them for months before this happened. This wasn’t something he cooked up overnight and decided he would do immediately after joining a company. Besides, how do you have heart trouble and then formulate a plan to join a company, work for them for months, and then claim you need an operation? A heart problem is an immediate need.
“When it suits people they always invoke clever arguments about ‘required by law’. You are also required by common-sense to do-work, which not everyone does.”
You are required by common-sense to read the article before trying to make groundless accusations. You don’t even have the timeline right…
Read the complaint. Rob asked for UNPAID leave to recover from a heart procedure. He was ready to return to work two weeks later but unfortunately had been terminated while he was in recovery. Not to mention the fact (which somebody added previously) that Rob didn’t sign up for Zynga’s medical benefits, preferring to stay on his wife’s coverage. I’m confused why you feel that Zynga was somehow taken advantage of here.
It seems that you are saying that a person with a heart condition should not accept a job because they may have an inconvenient medical emergency at some random time in the future.
Bradley,
nit-picking and being offensive won’t help your argument.
You are the one who hasn’t read the article properly. The employee joined Zynga on: Sep 29, and informed employer about his condition on Oct 29. Thats One Month and not ‘quite a few months’. Some common-sense is indeed required.
I have nothing against Mr Fulop, but everything against this kind of litiginous behavior on part of employees.
Tomorrow, if you do not find toilet-paper to use in the loo, you will file a suit against the company on grounds of cruelty. Where are we headed?
And why seek $50,000 and more in damages? Is this about extracting money? At this rate, employers would rather ‘not-hire’, than ‘hire’. And sure, you don’t want such a situation to arise.
This is the main point actually – not to create a situation where hiring employees becomes a risky-business.