The things at Ubisoft are bad. Real bad. After last week’s announcements of cancelled games and soon-to-be-closed studios, as well as a very uncomfortable shift to increase AI usage, the French publisher behind games like Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six, Far Cry and several other brands have what will likely be another swing-and-a-miss situation.
According to multiple media outlets such as Rogue and IGN, Ubisoft has come forward with a proposal for “voluntary mutual termination agreement”, a move that will likely kill about 200 job positions within its global structure — the kicker is that this time, it will also affect its Paris head office.
“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 (RCC), a collective, voluntary mutual termination agreement that could involve up to 200 positions at its headquarters in France,” the company’s statement reads.
“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 “Rupture Conventionnelle Collective” part bears some explaining: essentially, it is a French labor law mechanism that enables a company to reduce its headcount through a negotiated agreement with trade unions, relying strictly on voluntary departures.
The difference from a traditional layoff is that Ubisoft would not be required to prove financial distress to implement this process. It would, however, be obligated to provide laid off staff with specific guarantees, including severance pay above the legal minimum, outplacement support, state unemployment benefits and repositioning recommendation.
Due to this process involving negotiations with unionized parties, this will require approval from all the proper legal entities before moving forward.
Not that the supposed “obligations” did anything to dampen the pushback. According to GamesIndustry, here’s what Solidaires Informatique, the industry union representative, had to say about the whole thing:
“At this stage, it seems clear to us that Yves Guillemot has no knowledge or understanding of his company or its employees. The company is continuing its cost reduction and lay off plan. Our teams are already working under pressure, often understaffed. After several years without pay rises (or very small increases), we understand that once again, employees will not receive a raise this year. At the same time, the reorganisation is creating a number of high-level positions with excessive salaries.”
So, yeah, what was already dicey is now looking dicey-er.
