Unions will reportedly strike as Ubisoft proposes to cut 18% of workforce at French HQ

Following a new proposal from Ubisoft to cut around 200 jobs, or around 18% of its employees, at its headquarters in Paris, France, French unions representing Ubisoft employees are allegedly opting to strike in a swift response to the plans.

This new proposal to cut nearly 200 jobs was not included in its restructuring plans detailed on January 21, which resulted in the culling of six of its titles and the delay of others, including the rumored Assassin’s Creed Black Flag remake. It also came with a mandate that all employees must return to the office five days a week.

A Ubisoft spokesman gave a statement to IGN regarding the proposal.

“In line with last week’s announcements on its new operating model and the acceleration of cost-reduction initiatives, Ubisoft International has initiated discussions regarding a potential Rupture Conventionnelle Collective,” began the statement.

“A collective, voluntary mutual termination agreement that could involve up to 200 positions at its headquarters in France,” the spokesperson continued. 

“At this stage, this remains a proposal and no decision will be final until a collective agreement is reached with employee representatives and validated by French authorities. The proposal applies exclusively to Ubisoft International employees under French contracts and has no impact on other French entities or Ubisoft teams worldwide.”

The unions representing Ubisoft workers are reportedly not taking this proposal lying down, with French financial paper Les Echos reporting that a number have allegedly agreed to a three-day-long strike next month.

A machine-translated quote from the paper reads:

“According to our information, all the French unions – the Video Game Workers’ Union (STJV), Solidaires Informatique, the CFE-CGC, the CGT, and Printemps écologique – representing the French video game giant have unanimously agreed to a strike that will take place from February 10 to 12.”

In unison

The return to office mandate included in Ubisoft’s restructuring plans previously drew the ire of Solidaires Informatique, who called on Ubisoft employees to strike due to “the absurdity of management’s decisions.”

Now, with reported involvement of more unions and an alleged unanimous strike vote, the unions appear to be gearing up to take action. Given that Ubisoft has now proposed to cut more jobs, this will only add to the union’s case and the reasons for their strike action.

The same report from Les Echos claims that the five French unions,  the Video Game Workers’ Union (STJV), Solidaires Informatique, the CFE-CGC, the CGT, and Printemps écologiqueare, are reportedly reaching out to unions representing Ubisoft workers outside of France.

Given that Ubisoft’s restructuring has now seen the closure of two studios, this swift pushback and the involvement of multiple unions seem more necessary than ever.