Andre Yoskowitz
6 Apr 2009 11:02
Microsoft has quietly announced they have settled with game developer Jamie Durrant who had sued the software giant over alleged homophobia within the company.
Durrant was asking for GBP 45,000 in the case, in which he claimed Microsoft's HR department "blatantly disregarded" his complaints of homophobic abuse within Microsoft's Lionhead Studios.
"We are pleased to have reached an amicable resolution to this matter with Mr. Durrant," noted a Microsoft spokesman. "The terms of the settlement are confidential, but we can confirm that Mr. Durrant will not continue his employment at Lionhead as part of the agreement."
"Microsoft has a longstanding commitment to diversity. We attract, recruit and respect diverse talent and we have included sexual orientation in our anti-discrimination policies for 20 years.
"Our efforts have been recognised by a wide range of groups, including the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in its 2009 Corporate Equality Index. We do not tolerate breaches of our code of business conduct and take any complaints extremely seriously.
"Throughout this process, those to whom Mr. Durrant brought his concerns have taken them seriously and concrete actions have been taken to address them. Neither Mr. Durrant's sexual orientation nor the nature of his complaint had any bearing on the way it was handled," concluded the company.
Durrant had claimed that emails began being sent around the office with subject headings such as 'I'm Jim and I'm Gay' and 'Me and My Favorite Men', while other developers called him "Fag Boy Jim" around the office.