Ubisoft Workers were reportedly leaving because of low pay and dissatisfaction with the work environment.
While it hasn’t been as public as Activision-Blizzard’s ongoing workplace legal battle, Ubisoft is also undergoing some significant workplace culture issues, which Axios is reporting has resulted in a mass exodus of workers in the past year. Employees interviewed about this trend called it “the great exodus” or “the cut artery.”
This trend can be best illustrated by taking a look at the developers working on the biggest projects of Ubisoft. Axios reports that Ubisoft workers have left many top-credited people on projects such as Far Cry6. Five of the 25 top contributors are gone, while the game has been out for just two months. The Assassin’s Creed Valhalla leadership and developers have also left. Twelve of the 50 most credited employees in the game have also left. This number was initially 13, but one has recently returned from earlier this year.
This is not just about leadership. In the last six months, Ubisoft’s Montreal- and Toronto studios have seen a decline in mid-level and lower-level employees. This has led to a slowdown in ongoing projects. A developer told Axios that a Ubisoft worker had to contact them after they quit the company to resolve a development problem. Everyone who knew about the system they were working with was gone. Axios’ sources which included several former and current Ubisoft developers, indicated a variety of reasons why this happened. These include low pay, better opportunities, dissatisfaction with the company’s creative direction and disappointment with the company’s handling its ongoing workplace misconduct scandal.
Ubisoft representatives stated that the company had hired approximately 2600 employees since April. Chief People Officer Anika Grant told the outlet Ubisoft’s attrition rate is higher than usual, but “it’s still within industry norms.” Based on data supplied by Ubisoft and reported by LinkedIn, the publisher’s attrition rate is 12%, which is lower than Activision-Blizzard’s 16%, but higher than companies like EA’s 9%, Take-Two’s 8%, and Epic Games’ 7%. Ubisoft announced pay increases at its Canadian studios to address the pay gap. Grant stated that this had resulted from a 50% increase in retention rates. This has frustrated other Ubisoft developers who haven’t received similar raises.
More information about Ubisoft’s current state:
- Ubisoft Employees Are Dissatisfied with CEO’s Response to the Call for Real Changes in Company Culture
- Multiple Ubisoft High-Ups Subject to Workplace Harassment Complaint at French Court
- Ubisoft Fires Skull and Bones Director, but Not for Sexual Harassment
One Ubisoft developer discussed Ubisoft’s #MeToo campaign handling. He said this had been a contributing factor but not necessarily the deciding factor in people leaving the company. The anonymous developer pointed out that harassment and misconduct can be directed at women and people of color. Axios spoke to an ex-employee who said that they tried to use a hands-on approach to change its culture but were not being heard by management.
The developer said that they emphasized “moving on” and “looking forward” while disregarding their employees’ complaints, concerns, and cries.
Ubisoft leadership claims that its company standing is comparable to what one would expect for a large video game company. A recent survey was conducted across the company. Employees were asked to recommend Ubisoft to others. The results came back with a score of 74. This is close enough to the industry average, according to a spokesperson for Ubisoft.
This news comes just a few days after the company announced that it is developing a remake of Splinter Cell games and integrating NFTs in Ghostrecon: Breakpoint. This is not doing much to the company.
