700 Ubisoft employees in France participated in a strike action organized by the French game workers union, STJV (Syndicat des Travailleurs et Travailleuses du Jeu Vidéo), following failed annual salary negotiations.
Nearly 700 Ubisoft Workers Strike in France Over Salary Dispute and Contention with Management
"The message to Ubisoft's management is extremely clear"
The strike, organized by STJV (Syndicat des Travailleurs et Travailleuses du Jeu Vidéo), took place last week on February 14 and affected Ubisoft's Paris, Montpellier, Annecy, Lyon, and Bordeaux studios. STJV stated that despite their efforts to reach a satisfactory compromise during the annual salary negotiations, the discussions hit a roadblock.
The union accused Ubisoft management of offering imbalanced budget increases below inflation for the second consecutive year, alleging that the company was prioritizing profit over the well-being of its employees, while Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot reported to investors that the second and third quarters of 2023 will exceed initial targets.
SJTV in a statement said, "The conclusion is obvious: for Ubisoft's management, reducing our standard of living is not a bug, it's a feature. That a company that continues to make profits, despite its multi-deficient management, should decide to make employees pay in order to increase its profits is simply unacceptable," before calling on the workers to join in the all-day strike.
In response to the perceived lack of progress in negotiations, nearly 700 Ubisoft employees participated in the strike. The union highlighted the discrepancy between Ubisoft's reported profits and the proposed below-inflation salary increases, labeling the situation as unacceptable.
In an update on Twitter (X), the union proclaimed, "The message to Ubisoft's management is extremely clear, in a company where the CEO once strutted around claiming that 'when a union comes to Ubisoft, I'll leave.'"
This takes place during a time when Ubisoft is making huge strides in its business, with a major revamp to its subscription business model and reportedly swinging bigger in China's gaming scene. "We believe we're offering a compelling reason for our players to stick around," Ubisoft stated previously following its landmark cloud gaming deal, but it seems the same could not be said for its employees.
Union Representatives Dishes Out on the Situation
Ubisoft's union representatives explained to French publication Gamekult that the company's directive to cut production costs by 200 million Euros over two years was a point of contention among employees. "We don't agree with this strategy," a representative stated. "When you're a video game studio, the best way to make money is to make video games, and above all to make them in good conditions, so that they're of good quality."
They added, "It's not by economizing on the workers who make them, nor by economizing on the tools they use, that you're going to make money in a capitalist framework." Another shared, "In 2024, we're being offered the same envelopes even though Ubisoft has released several games that are doing well. It's incomprehension and anger among the employees. And we're carrying that anger with us."
Moreover, another representative commented on the growing trend of unionization within the gaming industry, although noting that this shift towards addressing long-standing systemic issues faced by employees is only "scratching the surface." They stated, "I don't think it's a coincidence that the same problems are being denounced simultaneously in several studios. There's a kind of 'bubble' bursting. For too long, there was no union organization in the studios, but the trend is reversing."
Last month, the Game Workers branch of the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain declared that its memberships rose by 50% between December 2022-2023. Amid the layoff trend continuing in the gaming industry, more and more employees put their foot down as many around the globe become impacted by the issues in the industry.
Source:
Gamekult: Grève à Ubisoft : les délégués du STJV répondent à nos questions
STJV's statement
French Ubisoft workers on strike over salary
700 Ubisoft workers strike in France over failed salary negotiations
