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Hello Jeff, Erik and Lisa,
It's been a little bit since I worked at Paizo in the CS dept under Sara Marie. I had a wonderful opportunity to work with a stellar CS team comprised of hard-working, resilient, and deeply passionate people. I left Paizo to pursue a job that offered better compensation. Paizo was and is my dream company to work for, but I was unable to support myself on the minimum wage salary offered by the company. I came to the company during a time of severe backlog created by Humble Bundles, system errors, a global pandemic, and other issues outside CS control. During my time there (and after I left) I saw the CS and Warehouse staff work in concert during the worst health disaster of our lifetime to not only reduce but eliminate that backlog of customer requests. Sara led our team expertly, ensuring that we not only accomplished our work but felt like part of a family while doing so.
You can imagine my surprise when I learned she had been fired from the company and that Diego resigned in solidarity.
Further surprising was the lackluster and at times aggravating response provided by the company publicly. I can't speak to what spirited lapse of judgement led to the decision to terminate the community cornerstone of the company, but that's y'alls bed to sleep in now that you've made it.
What I can speak to is my demand that Paizo recognizes UPW without obstruction or delay. Unions have been a big part of my life and in my family and community. Every worker deserves the right of representation, and that has clearly been lacking in Paizo's workspace. Unionized workplaces lead to a better quality of life for employees, higher quality products, and a better company image.
What's a letter to a gaming company without a little choose your own adventure:
A) Block and fight the union, solidify your position as the BBEG of the Paizo community and employees, and I will no longer freelance for your IPs (PFACG, SoM, G&G, Tech Revolution, and Galactic Magic insofar) or buy your products.
or
B) Accept and support the union, build a better place for all, and I would be an enthusiastic subscriber of a Unionized workplace (and encourage all my friends to do so).
I understand that the publishing industry (and while I'm not privy to the receipts I can assume Paizo as well) is subject to razor-thin margins and that increasing wages and benefits might seem like a painful or difficult proposition in regards to the profit received by the executive staff of the company. I'll ask you to consider if you want to be the kind of company known for hiring employees who are willing to work for well below living wages because they love the worlds we create, or if you want to be the company that is known to have passionate, well-compensated and happy employees in a union workplace. Make the right choice.
To Jeff, Erik and Lisa, you have power and influence over a beloved company and IP line that has brought countless people joy and excitement over the decades, don't split the party.
To my CS homies, I love y'all so much, you do wonderful work for the community every day, and I hope I can someday rejoin you once Paizo has become a union shop. Until then, solidarity <3
Regards,
Calliope Lee Taylor