Mackenzie Clifton, the former Nintendo of America QA worker who filed a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) complaint against the Redmond-based software developer, reached a settlement with Nintendo and Aston Carter, the employment agency Nintendo works with to hire contract labor (first reported by Polygon). Clifton filed her complaint in April 2022, alleging Aston Carter and Nintendo fired her after she expressed interest in forming or joining a union.
Nintendo told Polygon at the time that the company fired Clifton for reportedly breaking a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).
Another former Nintendo worker filed a similar complaint in August 2022 that accused both companies of dismissing them after engaging in “protected activities.” That complaint remains unresolved, but while Nintendo did not issue an apology to Clifton as she requested, she still managed to reach an agreement that includes receiving $29,910 in back pay and damages.
The agreement, which you can read on Scribd, holds Aston Carter responsible for paying the agreed amount.
The NLRB will also require Nintendo of America to post a notice at its Redmond, Wash., campus informing employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act, where it must remain posted for 60 consecutive days. Nintendo is also required to send this notice to all employees via email.
The resolution is a bilateral one, and while it makes no explicit mention of Clifton’s obligations, a Nintendo spokesperson told Polygon that “all parties remain obligated not to disclose Nintendo’s confidential business information and trade secrets, which are paramount to our development process and product offerings.”
Or, in other words, Clifton remains under the terms of her previous NDA agreements.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF
