700 Ubisoft workers strike in France over failed salary negotiations

[Gamernyc78]

700 Ubisoft workers strike in France over failed salary negotiations

Over 700 unionised Ubisoft employees working across the company's French studios have taken part in an organised day of…

www.eurogamer.net

The strike, organised by French game workers union STJV (Syndicat des Travailleurs et Travailleuses du Jeu Vidéo), took place on 14th February across Ubisoft's Paris, Montpellier, Annecy, Lyon, and Bordeaux studios. The STJV had called for action at the start of this month, saying annual salary negotiations had reached an unsatisfactory conclusion.

"In recent weeks," the STJV wrote in a statement shared at the time, "Mandatory Annual Negotiations on salaries have taken place in several Ubisoft entities in France, and the STJV was obviously present. Despite concerted efforts by union organisations to find an acceptable compromise, negotiations hit a wall."

The STJV accused Ubisoft management of offering a "budget for increases below inflation, for the second year in a row", saying the company was hiding behind a "purely arbitrary cost reduction policy". "How do we correlate this contempt with our CEO's exhortations to 'gain agility and efficiency'?," it wrote. "How could we accept such a low level of increases when the company boasts of a second quarter 'well beyond [our] expectations', while wanting to 'pay tribute to the exceptional commitment of the teams'? This reward system seems very poorly balanced to us

 

[Gamernyc78]

Industry in upheaval.

 

[Yurinka]

"purely arbitrary cost reduction policy"

. "How do we correlate this contempt with our CEO's exhortations to 'gain agility and efficiency'?," it wrote. "How could we accept such a low level of increases when the company boasts of a second quarter 'well beyond [our] expectations', while wanting to 'pay tribute to the exceptional commitment of the teams'? This reward system seems very poorly balanced to us

If there is a gaming company who since decades should have cut the fat and highly reduce their manpower firing a ton of people it's Ubisoft: they have a manpower way bigger than the rest of the big company while their revenue isn't way bigger, but lower. And they also have a very limited profitability.

And their workers have a nice salary, with great bonuses and yearly salary increases even if some year doesn't increase a lot if you, the games where you worked or the company doesn't perform well.

But Ubisoft always avoided to make massive layoffs. These folks should know that if the company raises salaries let's say a 10-15% (made up random number) maybe they have to fire 10-15% of their workforce. Because the profits didn't go up 10-15%. Maybe these workers before asking a 10-15% increase they should make the company generate a minimum 10-15% yearly increase in profitability. And yearly, not an isolated quarter because the salaries are forever and the number of a quarter change in the previous one.

They should optimize and improve their work, productivity and profitability to be at least on par with the other AAA publishers. And once they improve their results go back to ask for (bigger than the one they already have every year) salary rises.

And well, inside Ubisoft it always has been known that they had a ton of people with huge salaries doing almost nothing or a shitty job. They should fire them and replace them with younger and productive people. The difference in salary would leave money to give the rest the workers who deserve it a higher salary.

 

[Batzy]

I think this is just French thing and not an Ubi thing. They love to strike.

 

[Shadow2027]

Whens the last time they made something good? And this is right after they release skull and bones lol!! Ubisoft is more likely to do some shrinking over the next decade

 

[Gamernyc78]

Whens the last time they made something good? And this is right after they release skull and bones lol!! Ubisoft is more likely to do some shrinking over the next decade

I believe so between saturation with Assn Creed and bloat they aren't bring productive like they should imo.

 

[Yurinka]

Whens the last time they made something good?

The Prince of Persia game they released a few weeks ago

 

[Gediminas]

Whens the last time they made something good? And this is right after they release skull and bones lol!! Ubisoft is more likely to do some shrinking over the next decade

Prince of Persia. Platinumed it, great game.