The Syndicat des Travailleurs et Travailleuses du Jeu Vidéo (STJV), the French game workers union, has urged Ubisoft employees to walk out from October 15 to 17. This follows a September 17 report from GamesIndustry.biz that revealed Ubisoft informed its 19,000 global employees they must work in the office three days a week. The exact start date for this policy is still uncertain, but the union is swiftly mobilizing in response.
STJV has expressed concerns about the policy's impact on employees, noting it was implemented "without any tangible justification or consultation with workers' representatives." "After over five years of effective remote work, many colleagues have restructured their lives (family, housing, parenthood, etc.) and cannot revert to previous working conditions," STJV stated. "This decision will likely result in job losses, project disarray, and a significant rise in psychosocial risks for those who stay."
The union is calling for Ubisoft to negotiate a formal remote work agreement and increase salaries to counter declining living standards. Ubisoft has yet to comment on the strike call. In February, over 700 workers went on strike after salary negotiations failed. The strike call comes amid Ubisoft's recent challenges, including delays for major titles like Assassin's Creed Shadows and the underperformance of Star Wars Outlaws, leading to a company-wide project review and a drop in share price to a multi-year low. If widely supported, the planned strike could further disrupt production schedules, affecting the company's ability to meet future deadlines.
