By which they mean low wages
A number of Ubisoft France employees are on strike today after the collapse of union negotiations with Ubisoft management, who have reportedly proposed a budget for wages “that would be lower than inflation for the second year in a row”. The strikers are calling it a “badly balanced rewards system”. Cheeky devils!
The news comes care of apostfrom Le Syndicat des Travailleurs et Travailleuses du Jeu Vidéo, who have evidently been doing their homework on videogame humour. That research has paid off, for here I am writing about the strikes, though I think I probably would have written about them anyway.
Solidarity with French Ubisoft workers on strike over salary today. ✊ 🎮 🇫🇷https://t.co/ED880VJ8Dp#GameDev#JoinAUnion
“Over the last few weeks the STJV took part in the Mandatory Annual Negotiations on salaries in several Ubisoft entities in France,” reads the post, which was published earlier this month. “Despite the unions' efforts to find an acceptable compromise, negotiations hit a wall. In order to hit arbitrary cost reductions targets, management offered a budget dedicated to raises that would be lower than inflation for the second year in a row.
“How can we square such disdain with our CEO urging us to gain in agility and efficiency?” it continues. “How could we accept such low raises when the company boasts of ‘an excellent second quarter, well above [our] expectations’, all while paying tribute to the exceptional level of commitment from the teams? We’d say that’s a pretty badly balanced rewards system.
“The conclusion is thus: to Ubisoft’s management, our living standards going down isn’t a bug, it’s a feature. A company that still makes a profit, even when its execs have failed repeatedly, choosing to have its employees pay to increase its profits is plainly unacceptable.”
“Let’s take advantage of the day traditionally dedicated to passion to let our employer know that our vocation for this profession is not a pretext for treating us like furniture,” the flier concludes.
