Ubisoft employees launch petition seeking public support for improved working conditions

A Better Ubisoft, a group of Ubisoft employees campaigning for improved working conditions at the publisher, has launched a petition seeking public support for reform following what it sees as an inadequate response to its demands from senior management.

Last summer saw a wave of Ubisoft employees calling out toxic work conditions within the company - including allegations of serious sexual misconduct aimed at members of senior management - after which Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot pledged to "do everything in [his] power to ensure that everyone... feels welcomed, respected, and safe".

However, despite those assurances, over 1,000 current and former Ubisoft employees signed an open letter in July slamming Ubisoft leadership's "empty promises" in tackling a company culture allegedly rife with "systemic discrimination, harassment and bullying".

At the time, A Better Ubisoft reiterated its key demands for improving working conditions:

• Stop promoting, and moving known offenders from studio to studio, team to team with no repercussions. This cycle needs to end.
• We want a collective seat at the table, to have a meaningful say in how Ubisoft as a company moves forward from here.
• Cross-industry collaboration, to agree to a set of ground rules and processes that all studios should can use to handle these offences in the future.
• This collaboration must heavily involve employees in non-management positions and union representatives.

Last week, A Better Ubisoft issued a fresh statement, writing, "Only yesterday Activision Blizzard committed to increase their number of women and non-binary workers by 50%...to invest $250 million 'to accelerate opportunities for diverse tales' and to release annual salary transparency reports, meeting some of the ABK Workers Alliance demands. In just 3 months it seems that they have listened to the concerns of employees and acted on them. While our demands are not identical, many overlap and could be addressed through similar actions just as swiftly."

To Ubisoft senior management it added, "You offer nothing more than your assurance that all investigation are impartial, all sanctions are appropriate and that victims and witnesses are protected, while offering us no evidence, involvement or oversight in any part of the process.

One week on from that statement, the group has taken to Twitter again with another call to arms, writing, "100 days ago we signed our open letter and set out our four key demands. None of our demands have been met. So today we're launching a new petition, open for ALL our supporters to sign".

"This new petition is open to EVERYONE who supports the #ABetterUbisoft campaign. Please add your name, show your support of @ABetterUbisoft on Twitter and share this link. Together we CAN build a better Ubisoft and end abuse in gaming."

This wishing to support A Better Ubisoft by signing the petition can do so here.