PARIS, Oct 16 — Workers at video game giant Ubisoft began three days of strike action in France yesterday in a dispute over home working and pay, hitting a firm already struggling with poor sales and a collapsing share price.
Titles such as “Star Wars Outlaws”, “Skull and Bones” and the new episode of “Prince of Persia” have failed to impress, and the company spooked investors by delaying the latest release of the “Assassin’s Creed” franchise to next year.
The value of Ubisoft shares has collapsed by more than 40 percent since the beginning of the year, touching their lowest level in 10 years in September.
This week’s strike, sparked by a September message from management insisting on a return to three days working in the office for all staff worldwide, follows on from another walkout in February when hundreds in France joined a dispute over pay.
Unions said they had received no response to the grievances aired in February and that the September message was “the straw that broke the camel’s back”.
Clement Montigny of the STJV union told AFP the move to in-person working broke promises made to staff and “calls into question the way they organise their lives”.
Ubisoft managers told staff in an email that returning to the office was vital to foster creativity, and promised to give workers time to adjust.
AFP saw around 50 people on a picket line in Montpellier and more than 100 in Paris, with Ubisoft offices in Annecy and Lyon also affected.
The STJV union said more than 700 were taking part, a similar number to February’s action, which was one of the gaming sector’s biggest walkouts.
Strikers outside Ubisoft’s Paris headquarters told AFP they were becoming disillusioned and felt the company was not listening.
“How long will it be before they start laying off workers and downgrading their ambitions,” asked Lola, a 30-year-old game designer, who described the atmosphere as “gloomy”. — AFP
