Last month, French Union Solidaries Informatique called for workers at Ubisoft Paris to strike following Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot’s message to employees asking for them to steer the company in the right direction following poor sales performance over the holiday season. Two weeks later, over 40 Ubisoft employees attended the strike for better working conditions. Solidaries Informatique says that more strikes will be planned during key moments in the games’ production.
Axios reports that the employees gathered in the studio’s cafeteria and the movement took the form of a “group strategy discussion” rather than a protest. One employee said that the movement “has helped build the next strikes to come. If Ubisoft management doesn’t want to hear from us, they might understand that it’s the workers who decide when games are released.”
The group demanded a 10% salary increase and a four-day workweek. During a recent staff meeting, Guillemot addressed his comments and reportedly apologized. CPO Anika Grant rejected the four-day workweek demand during the meeting.
Talking to GamesIndustry.biz, Solidaires Informatique confirmed that over 40 people attended the strike at Ubisoft Paris. According to them, “a lot of remote workers told us they were following the strike without reporting it,” making it a “difficult number to track.” Solidaires Informatique claims that the strikers represented “at least” 15% of the studio’s staff.
Talking about the conversations that happened among those in the cafeteria, Solidaires said that there was a “realization” among them that “Ubisoft’s general strategy is a failure, with unachievable expectations on one hand,” and harsh working conditions on the other. According to the union, the staff is assuming that layoffs are coming, based on Guillemot’s recent communications, as well as more managerial pressure. The staff says that they are expecting things to get worse in the next 18 to 24 months. Ubisoft Paris execs did not contact the strikers or the union on the day (“except to ask us not to destroy the premises,” Solidaires clarified).
“As a consequence, and in the absence of changes on [Ubisoft’s] part, more strikes will be planned, at key moments in the games’ production,” Solidaries Informatique said.