Ass of Can Whooping
Member
Because they are. They're going to end their FY at a loss. And that's not because of the current climate. It's because they've done a shit job
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Ubisoft Paris Employees To Strike Following Yves Guillemot Comments
- Thread starter IbizaPocholo
- Start date
- Business Game Dev
Because they are. They're going to end their FY at a loss. And that's not because of the current climate. It's because they've done a shit job
winjer
Gold Member
Do you really think he made all those games by himself?
The guy probably doesn't even know how to program or design a game.
AJUMP23
Gold Member
Yes, just like Jobs made the iPhone.
winjer
Gold Member
Now that is the biggest poser of all time.
Kacho
Member
I think there’s plenty of blame to go around here.
Why has Skull and Bones and BGE2 taken an eternity to make?
Who’s green lighting dozens of battle royale games only to cancel them?
Who thought turning Breakpoint into a dopey Destiny clone was a good idea?
Why do Riders Republic and Roller Champions exist? Who’s the audience?
Why does Far Cry and Assassin’s Creed have in-game stores?
Ubisoft you’re killing me bros. You had something good going about 5 years ago. Far Cry Primal, AssCreed Origins/Odyssey, Wildlands were all dope. Go back to that. Please.
Why has Skull and Bones and BGE2 taken an eternity to make?
Who’s green lighting dozens of battle royale games only to cancel them?
Who thought turning Breakpoint into a dopey Destiny clone was a good idea?
Why do Riders Republic and Roller Champions exist? Who’s the audience?
Why does Far Cry and Assassin’s Creed have in-game stores?
Ubisoft you’re killing me bros. You had something good going about 5 years ago. Far Cry Primal, AssCreed Origins/Odyssey, Wildlands were all dope. Go back to that. Please.
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
https://downloads.ctfassets.net/8ae...BISOFT_DEU_21-22_MEL_INTERACTIF_UK_160622.pdf
To be fair, Yves also took a pay cut.
https://www.axios.com/2022/06/23/ubisoft-ceo-pay-cut-yves-guillemot
But it also wasn't as much as what Nintendo did, and it was less a salary cut and more like he didn't take a bonus (which he'll probably get back later when no one's looking)
From the same document:
TheThreadsThatBindUs
Member
More like, I'm gonna go on strike to protect my job because working more efficiently == cutting staff and leaving the remaining workers to be forced to work longer hours.
Skifi28
Member
They have my full support.
winjer
Gold Member
That is not a really a pay cut. He just didn't take another big bonus for that quarter.
Considering how much he screwed up the company, he should have gotten any bonus for several years.
TheThreadsThatBindUs
Member
Many of you in this thread are completely missing the point.
When an Exec like Yves says something like, "be careful with your spending", what he means is "cut costs as much as possible; meaning salary freezes and layoffs for contractors"
When an exec like Yves says something like, "work more efficiently", what he really means is, "cut the head count and leave the remaining few workers cripplingly overloaded, while refusing to offer any overtime pay."
You're absurdly naive if you're taking Yves's comments at face value.
When an Exec like Yves says something like, "be careful with your spending", what he means is "cut costs as much as possible; meaning salary freezes and layoffs for contractors"
When an exec like Yves says something like, "work more efficiently", what he really means is, "cut the head count and leave the remaining few workers cripplingly overloaded, while refusing to offer any overtime pay."
You're absurdly naive if you're taking Yves's comments at face value.
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Bragr
Banned
It's everyone's fault.
French are a proud people who fought hard multiple times to conquier their social rights, and rightly so.
Having recently moved to Canada it is insane to me to see how people here have a slave mentality towards work and are ok to put up with nearly zero social protection, insane bullshit at work, extreme job volatility and frailness overall, nearly non existent holidays. It is like going 1 century back in time towards full social regression and zero salary right againt employers will.
It is not because this slave mentality is prevalent in America that Europeans should be ok with it.
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Ubisoft Paris Employees To Strike Following CEO Comments
Ubisoft employees announce a strike in response to comments made by CEO Yves Guillemot.www.dualshockers.com
Employees of Ubisoft's Paris division are set to strike on January 27. This comes as a response to statements made by Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot on his plan to combat the company's poor financial performance in 2022.
As reported by Kotaku, Guillemot intends to cut company expenses by $215 million. In an email to employees, he called for unity and dedication, writing "I am also asking that each of you be especially careful and strategic with your spending and initiatives, to ensure we’re being as efficient and lean as possible."
In response, the Ubisoft-Paris chapter of the trade union Solidaires Informatique announced its intention to strike. Union members say Guillemot's language is a dog whistle signaling the deterioration of working conditions at the company, and in response, the union members have released a set of demands.
The union accuses Guillemot of passing corporate failures onto the workforce and warns that his request for employees to "give their all" could increase developer burnout and harsher crunch cycles. Employees claim there is plenty of money to go around without resorting to Guillemot's austerity measures. It cites millions made in stock sold to the company's largest shareholder, Chinese tech giant Tencent, which accounts for 11% of the company's stock.
So basically he said "Work harder so I can buy another Ferrari. Otherwise, you'll be fired and I will buy a Ferrari anyway"
TheThreadsThatBindUs
Member
See my post above.
If their jobs are at risk, deepening the hole Ubisoft is in might send enough of a message to the board that Yves needs to fucking go.
Considering Yves's comments will lead to mass layoffs, it's better to go down fighting than just waiting quietly to be laid off by a guy that's sitting there smiling while earning nearly a million Euro salary.
winjer
Gold Member
The workers don't have the power to decided the next projects for the company.
Just as an example, when Ives decided to bet hard on NTFs, the workers warned about it.
Ives decided to go on with the NFT push and the company lost money on that crap.
Ass of Can Whooping
Member
Bragr
Banned
I rather kiss corporate ass than be a redneck that buys into everything they are told. The people that are angling this are the same internet sources that would sell you every clickbait topic under the sun.
Yet the moment everyone here finds a topic that suits your interest, you jump on it on the first flop.
You or anyone here has absolutely no idea what is going on at Ubisoft, you can extract all sorts of agendas out of his message. What do you know about his relationship with studio heads? have they been fucking things up? are the hiring processes poor and the culture bad?
This reminds me of the Bayonetta 3 voice actor thing, where everyone went after Platinum.
He had a tiny little message where he tried to pep people up, and everyone wants blood. Cuddling of the mind and all that.
winjer
Gold Member
Do you know who knows what is going on at Ubisoft better than any of us?
The workers. The ones that are fed up with the crap from that CEO.
But you are free to continue to kiss some corporate ass.
Bragr
Banned
He is completely reliant on others to lead that company. Do you think he just sat down and went "fuck it, now we are gonna make some NFT bullshit?" who even knows who came up with this.
How much money do you think they lost on NFTs?
Clear
CliffyB's Cock Holster
Ummm, that's one way to look at it.
The reality however is that if the board demand root and branch reform to the extent that they'd consider replacing Guillemot, then the cuts aren't going to stop there. Its a perfect pretext to shed *all* the dead wood, and get rid of all the squeaky wheels in the process.
They simply don't have leverage. At best they impact productivity at one site, which just means that studio/location inches higher up on the list for disposal or consolidation. Its not like there's crucial infrastructure being held hostage, they can simply relocate the project(s).
Ass of Can Whooping
Member
Don't worry France isn't America. They actually have to go through a process before they can sack you.
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winjer
Gold Member
It wasn't a decision made by the workers. So it's not everyone's fault like you said.
Bragr
Banned
I can't believe people use phrases like "kiss some corporate ass" again, as the emo goth kids did in the early 90s.
Do you mean the workers who want a seat at the table and choose who comes and goes? you are aware that this is that insane group of Ubisoft employees that walk out for anything?
They are organizing a strike because of stern comments from an email and you guys treat it like Yves is lashing them with a chain.
winjer
Gold Member
Maybe if they had given one seat at the table for a workers representative, the company wouldn't have made so many mistakes and gotten to the poor state it is today.
Read the news about Ubisoft and you will find this mail is just the tip of the iceberg.
Let's remember that you started on this thread by calling the workers as pussies. So you don't get to play the mature card, when someone does the same to you.
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Clear
CliffyB's Cock Holster
What, like "consultation periods"?
SOP is just to stagger out redundancies in waves, so they don't hit the legal thresholds for consultation. Do that sufficient times until the place can be cost-effectively shuttered.
The reality is that they need time to cherry-pick the minority of employees they want to keep/relocate, redistribute assets, finish leasing arrangements etc. The actually "valuable" stuff the IP, the data etc. is all effortlessly portable.
Noone is guaranteed a "job for life", at best you're entitled to a severance package based on time-served, and most likely time-remaining if you're on a termed contract. None of these things are a "Problem" They aren't going bust and/or struggling to make payroll, so even if it takes a year to get these employees off the books then its just a benefit that may only mature by the end of the fiscal year.
cinnamonandgravy
Member
i mean, thats how a company works. good or bad, corporate's performance affects the workforce.
if you dont like what corporate is doing, you dont stay at that company (easier said than done, yes yes).
dont know the whole story though so ill shut up.
spons
Gold Member
Ubisoft has been churning out inferior garbage with poor sales for years and the blame is on management, not the average worker, yet they are getting fired over "efficiency". It's about time they organized a good strike. I'm not a "fuck the corporations, man" type of person but if higher-ups take a dump on you, you have every right to complain.
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
Yes I know that's what I said in the rest of my post
cireza
Member
I know this very well, I am French and my post has nothing to do with this, but with recurrent striking habits we get from specific sectors of activities.
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MMaRsu
Banned
Yeah a real critical thinker here boys
A.Romero
Member
Interesting considering a few years back Ubisoft was in risk of a hostile takeover and Yves threatened they would only acquire a husk of a company because all the talent would leave.
Hard to be empathetic with developers looking for better work conditions considering the huge demand there is for their talents. Just look for another job and let Ubisoft rot to hell. No reason to go through all the hassle related to striking and such. The company will not change fast enough and survive.
There are few possible scenarios in my opinion:
1) Workers strike, Ubisoft invests in working conditions and eventually bankrupts because of the increased costs
2) Workers strike, Ubisoft gives them the finger and eventually bankrupts due to not releasing products fast enough
3) Workers strike, Ubisoft invests in working conditions and finally gets bought by Tencent or Microsoft or whatever
I don't see an scenario where striking turns out to be positive for employees in the long run, regretfully.
Hard to be empathetic with developers looking for better work conditions considering the huge demand there is for their talents. Just look for another job and let Ubisoft rot to hell. No reason to go through all the hassle related to striking and such. The company will not change fast enough and survive.
There are few possible scenarios in my opinion:
1) Workers strike, Ubisoft invests in working conditions and eventually bankrupts because of the increased costs
2) Workers strike, Ubisoft gives them the finger and eventually bankrupts due to not releasing products fast enough
3) Workers strike, Ubisoft invests in working conditions and finally gets bought by Tencent or Microsoft or whatever
I don't see an scenario where striking turns out to be positive for employees in the long run, regretfully.
MMaRsu
Banned
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Sygma
Member
thats just your average company leader in France
I work at Dyson and the salaries are utter jokes, even for executives. And the amount of shit to do also makes relatively no sense since we all have to fulfill at least 2 or 3 different jobs. That being said France is kinda known for low salaries to begin with, iirc middle class is at 2200 euros lOl
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Mokus
Member
Yes, he founded the company, but he doesn't own it anymore. Also in France there are stronger laws that protect employees.
jakinov
Member
Some temporary loss is far from failing. They haven't been doing the greatest job. But they are far from "dead" and being "ruined" like people here think they are. They'll go on to cut operating costs, taking less risks and start releasing flag ship projects like Assassinss creed this year and likely be in the black again (which is what is expected by analysts and them).
The current climate has a big impact on things, it's expected to cause the gaming industry to shrink this year. People are dealing with high inflation and so discretionary spending on things like video games is likely to go down.
People here have been complaining about Ubisoft for years not investing in this, complaining about AC, complaing about that but they've been growing up until this year, a year where almost every company is feeling some heat and cutting back. Again their management hasn't been perfect but people conflate theirp personal issues with the company as widespread problems to them killing themselves.
Let us all remember when Nintendo was in a tough position, and it's leaders took a pay cut and full responsibility.
Now compare to what Yves Guillemot is doing.
This is the difference between a good leader and a parasite.
Nintendo boss Iwata halves pay, Miyamoto's wage cut too
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has announced he will take a 50 per cent pay cut in response to the company's continued…www.eurogamer.net
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot Is Taking a Large Paycut - IGN
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot is taking a large pay cut following a disappointing financial year for the studio.
Kacho
Member
AJUMP23
Gold Member
Like everyone gets a baguette and a 3 hour lunch.
Sygma
Member
Yeah for example here, unless you really go full neo nazi its literally against the law to fire people for being controversial on social media, also you just can't fire employees under permanent contracts on a whim either
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winjer
Gold Member
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot Is Taking a Large Paycut - IGN
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot is taking a large pay cut following a disappointing financial year for the studio.www.ign.com
Like another user showed on this thread, that was a bonus not taken.
Not exactly a pay cut.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
how dare them am i right?
Healthy AAA Industry Publisher right there boyz.
Not allowed to fight for better working conditions.
Healthy AAA Industry Publisher right there boyz.
Not allowed to fight for better working conditions.
jakinov
Member
It's still a pay cut when you are about to get paid you say I don't want the money. It being a bonus doens't really matter. Some CEOs don't eve get much of base salaries and all they get are stocks, stock-options or bonus cash. Money is fungible so that lets say he didn't deny the bonus; it's the same thing if he gives up the base pay; both get taxed the same both are jusst dollars that would have went into his bank account. Both cases, money they were owed was given up.