Ubisoft France Employees Have Gone On Strike

2023 was a terrible year for working in the gaming industry, with thousands of developers and artists becoming unemployed over the course of the previous year and unfortunately, 2024 has been pretty much the same. However, in a unique twist, a group of over 700 unionized workers embarked on a coordinated strike after the breakdown of salary negotiations and the growing discontent within the Ubisoft workforce.

If you are unaware or have not been keeping up to date with the gaming industry ins and outs, Ubisoft is no stranger to controversy. The company has been plagued with numerous allegations of poor treatment at the company, not to mention the large number of project cancellations that has seen the company lose around 10% in its stock price. This hasn't stopped the gaming giant from continuing it's less than desirable monetization practices or charging over $90 for the Premium Edition of Skull and Bones.

 

Considering all the controversy and issues surrounding the company, it makes sense as to why over 700 employees have organized a strike. The main reason for the strike was after the negotiations regarding employee salaries fell through. This strike was arranged by the French game workers union (STJV) and began on 14 February 2024, and spanned across multiple Ubisoft studios based in Paris, Montpellier, Annecy, Lyon, and Bordeaux. The STJV states that the Ubisoft management has been offering inadequate salary increases for two consecutive years and implementing cost-cutting measures despite the company's profitability. This lack of fair compensation has sparked widespread discontent for the developers working at the company.

The strike was able to garner an impressive 700 participants and has shown solidarity among other workers at Ubisoft as well as external supporters. The STJV has reiterated that this should be a clear signal for the higher ups of the gaming giant to take the fair treatment and compensation of its workers far more seriously. Unfortunately, this is not the first strike to happen, as back in 2021, an employee led organization known as ABetterUbisoft demanded change at the company after the company’s incredibly poor response to the allegations of sexual misconduct.

As we've seen in the past, this will likely not have much of an effect on Ubisoft's management, as seen previously with the handling of the 2021 sexual misconduct allegations. While change is unlikely to occur, it is still good to see employees stand up for themselves and demand the fair treatment that they are rightfully owed by a company that continually makes record profits off of their labor.

Daman Shelley (@UndeadandTired)
Editor, NoobFeed