Ubisoft Asks For 200 Voluntary Layoffs At Paris HQ, Labor Unions Respond With Call For Strike: “Enough Is Enough”
As part of their recently-announced creative “reset”, Ubisoft is looking to cut redundancies at their French office to the tune of roughly 200 “voluntary” exits – a request which has multiple labor unions calling for employees to go an immediate strike.
Having already resulted in the closure of two subsidiary studios, an undisclosed number of layoffs, orders to return to the office five-days a week, and multiple titles being either delayed or outright cancelled, Ubisoft’s cut-heavy game plan received its latest update on January 26th, courtesy of an all-hands communique sent to employees of its Paris-based headquarters.
Therein, per a copy obtained and shared with the public by GamesIndustry.biz editorial director Jon Hicks, the developer announced, “In line with last week’s announcements on its new operating model and the acceleration of cost-reduction initiatives, Ubisoft International has initiated discussions regarding a potential Rupture Conventionnelle Collective (RCC), a collective, voluntary mutual termination agreement that could involve up to 200 positions at its headquarters in France.”
“At this stage, this remains a proposal, and no decision will be final until a collective agreement is reached with employee representatives and validated by French authorities. The proposal applies exclusively to Ubisoft International employees under French contracts and has no impact on other French entities or Ubisoft teams worldwide.”
Per Hicks, these 200 cuts represent roughly 18% of the Paris HQ’s total staff.
Unsurprisingly, these surprise shake-ups have drawn the ire of French labor unions, their hackles raised by Ubisoft’s wanton disregard for the well-being of its employees and the company itself.
The first to take action was Solidaires Informatique, who on January 22nd organized a one-day strike outside Ubisoft’s Paris HQ in objection to the slash-and-burn nature of the company’s “quality”-focused “reset.”
From there, January 28th saw a joint statement issued by five other unions including Syndicat des Travailleureuses du Jeu Vidéo (STJV), the French Confederation of Management (CFE-CGC), the General Confederation of Labour (CGT), Printemps écologique, and the aforementioned Solidaires Informatique, decrying Ubisoft’s fly-by-night decision making and announcing a three-day strike:
“On January 21, 2026, Yves Guillemot announced the end of remote work, closure of several studios, cancellation of projects, and a new 200€ million ‘cost-cutting’ plan. We were informed of this at the same time as the press — as none of these changes had been discussed during the mandatory consultations with the works councils a few days earlier!
“On January 26, 2026, management announced the implementation of a voluntary departure plan that will affect 200 people at Ubisoft’s headquarters. These decisions are forcing us to act in order to protect those who keep this company alive.
Since Ubisoft’s founding in 1986, it seems clear today that management has lost sight of the very driving force behind our industry: its workers. No dialogue, no respect. With a wave of the hand, management dismisses:
- “the creativity of hundreds of employees by canceling several games (without specifying which ones!),
- “the future of studios destined for closure (again, without any details!),
- “the careers of colleagues who are being let go,
- “the social dialogue, already strained for several years,
- “the social gains, such as remote work, which allowed the company to shine during lockdowns. Management seems unable to stop mourning the pre-COVID era.
“The announced transformation claims to place games at the heart of its strategy, but without us, these games cannot exist. We are promised autonomy for Creative Houses, but what about autonomy for employees? Five days of mandatory in-office work: we are treated like children who need to be supervised, while our management gets away with lies and breaking the law.
“We have been negotiating for over a year on remote work policy, sometimes under difficult conditions. An agreement has been in place since September in some studios. Trampled underfoot! Our colleagues in entities without an agreement? At the mercy of arbitrary decisions.
“We are told about responsibilities, but those who wield this word so easily do not take any responsibility for the consequences of their catastrophic management, the latest result being the elimination of 200 jobs at Ubisoft’s headquarters.”
“We are not fooled,” the unions then declared. “Rather than taking financial responsibility for layoffs, they prefer to push us out by making our working conditions unbearable. It’s outrageous. Our colleagues carry on, hold fast, endure, out of solidarity, out of love for the industry, and out of passion. But enough is enough!”
From there declaring “It is because we love Ubisoft that this situation revolts us!”, the five groups proceeded to call for “a massive international strike by all Ubisoft employees on the 10th, 11th and 12th of February 2026!”
Sharing their demands, the unions called for a rejection of Ubisoft’s “anti-remote-work obsession”, their penchant for making “‘cost-cutting’ plans on employees’ backs”, their proclivity for “top-down decisions”, and their “coercive control on our working conditions”, as well as a re-commitment from leadership to “taking their responsibilities” seriously and honoring their “duty of sincerity in the face of its failings”
Ultimately, the union collective closed out their statement by declaring, “It is time for our management to understand that they cannot do whatever they want, whether with public money or the work of hundreds of people!”
“Without us, Ubisoft would never have conquered and transformed video games as it has done. We are history, WE ARE UBISOFT.”
At present, Ubisoft has not yet issued any public comment on their employees’ planned strike.
