Riot Games COO Suspended Without Pay Following Harassment Incidents
The publisher of League of Legends, Riot Games, has been facing backlash in recent months due to allegations of maintaining a sexist culture. After conducting an internal investigation, Riot has suspended its COO, Scott Gelb, without pay for two months in relation to multiple harassment incidents, as reported by Kotaku.
Accusations of Toxic Workplace Culture
In August, Kotaku published an extensive eight-month investigation that shed light on Riot’s toxic workplace culture. The investigation involved interviews with both former and current employees. Throughout the investigation, Gelb’s name consistently came up as he was accused of inappropriate touching of colleagues, both male and female, as well as farting near people’s faces.
The Visible Role of Gelb
According to sources cited by Kotaku, Gelb’s actions were well-known within the company. As a top executive, he was seen as a role model by subordinates, making his behavior all the more influential. Riot’s board, wanting to make Gelb’s punishment highly visible, responded to the allegations by suspending him without pay.
Unfounded Allegations and Light Punishment
In response to the allegations, Riot hired a law firm to investigate and released several statements. Riot CEO Nicolo Laurent stated in an email to employees that many of the investigation’s results would not be made public. However, Laurent also deemed many of the allegations against Gelb as “untrue.” The short duration of Gelb’s suspension has left some employees dissatisfied, especially given the magnitude of the #MeToo movement and the dismissal of numerous executives facing sexual harassment allegations.
Update Dec. 13 6:40pm CT: Riot Games has released a statement in response to the matter, addressing their commitment to evolving their culture. The statement acknowledges the investigation into Gelb conducted by outside legal counsel and states that, based on the findings, Riot’s Special Committee of the Board of Directors determined a two-month, unpaid leave of absence, along with training, as the appropriate action. The statement also confirms that many of the rumors surrounding Gelb were found to be untrue.
Riot Games, League of Legends, esports news, human resources, sexism, culture, internal investigation, harassment, toxic workplace, COO suspension, Gelb, role model, punishment, #MeToo era.