Fissure was removed after refusing to sign a termination agreement
Last month, there was a controversial event in the Vancouver Titan eSports organization when suddenly the whole roster for the Overwatch League (OWL) was released from the organization. Now, Vancouver Titan Overwatch player Baek “Fissure” Chan-hyung is bringing the event to the spotlight one more time by making claims that he was “forcibly removed” without payment. According to the Overwatch League, the rest of the team members were given buyouts and released as non-restricted free agents, but he didn’t take the deal; therefore, he was terminated for cause.
Baek issued a statement on Twitter this past Friday in which he caused confusion among the OWL community and its general rules because he claimed to have been released from the team without compensation. The OWL mentioned that it was aware of the situation and shared its position after the comments made by Baek. “The league has been engaged with the Titans on their roster changes, like it does with all teams, to ensure personnel decisions are handled according to league rules,” said an Overwatch League spokesperson to The Esports Observer. “All but one player agreed to a mutual severance with the team, allowing those players to become free agents and sign with a new team of their choosing immediately. The Vancouver Titans terminated the employment contract of Fissure for cause. The league office will not comment further on any pending dispute between Fissure and the Titans regarding his termination.”
Among the comment made by Baek, he said that the eSports organization was having financial issues due to the ongoing crisis and that’s why he was released, adding that the organization should have paid him the remainder of his salary. He has been in the middle of controversy before; Baek was fined $3,000 by the league late last year for leaking a league’s rule that was going to take effect the next season.