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Solidaires Informatique, a union representing workers at video game publisher Ubisoft, is calling for industrial action. The French software giant is facing a catastrophic day after the unveiling of its major company reset, which has seen the cancellation of six games and the delay of seven more.
Crucially, this move has also resulted in the closure of Ubisoft’s Halifax and Stockholm Studios.
Solidaires Informatique promptly took action, calling for all Ubisoft Paris employees to take action starting January 22 in a post on Bluesky.
The Union made its demands clear:
- The end of the cost-cutting plan.
- Maintaining and extending the teleworking conditions.
- Decent pay raises this year.
Solidaires Informatique described this as “an initial answer to the absurdity of management’s decisions” and declares that “other strikes are being discussed”.
“It is out of the question to let a boss run wild and destroy our working conditions. Perhaps we need to remind him that it is his employees who make the games.”
As a consequence of this tumultuous change in policy from Ubisoft, share prices dropped to 33% this morning.
Ubisoft previously released a statement on January 21, which details a company-wide restructure that includes a clause implying a full return to office mandate for employees of Ubisoft-owned studios.
“To support the effective implementation and operation of this new model, the Group also intends to return to five days per week on site for all teams, complemented by an annual allowance of working-from-home days”, the statement begins.
“In-person collaboration is a key enabler of collective efficiency, creativity, and success in a persistently more selective AAA market.”
Call to arms
Speaking to GamesIndustryBiz on the subject of the return to office, Ubisoft CFO Frederick Dugue weighed in.
“We will, of course, discuss with the employees and their representatives and all the teams,” began Dugue, “but it’s really a matter of further boosting the collective performance for AAA”.
However, given that Ubisoft has also announced it will “selectively close several studios and continue restructurings throughout the Group,” the union has made it clear that there is no room for discussion without the ensured safety of its employees’ jobs and improved working conditions.
While there are benefits to both in-office and remote working, return-to-office mandates can have harsh impacts on those who are unable to commute to an office due to disabilities or family commitments.
Not offering the option for hybrid working can constitute a breach of the labour law in France. In 2016, the French government enacted a labor law that includes the right for an employee to request remote working. In the event an employer denies this request, it must provide reasons for this refusal.
For those still at Ubisoft, Solidaires Informatique’s demands can be seen as a sorely needed call to action.
The words above the union’s announcement ring true: enough is enough.
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