It looks like Ubisoft is planning even more layoffs to accompany last week’s studio closures and game cancellations, according to reporting by IGN. The company is planning a massive reduction of the workforce in its Paris headquarters. It has proposed the loss of up to 200 jobs, which is nearly 20 percent of the current staff.
This will be organized under France’s Rupture Conventionnelle Collective (RCC) process, in which staff can agree to form a collective, voluntary mutual termination agreement. It’s not a done deal just yet, with a company spokesperson saying “at this stage, this remains a proposal and no decision will be final until a collective agreement is reached.”
The RCC process is voluntary, which is good for Ubisoft Paris employees, but the company hasn’t made any statement regarding what it would do if it doesn’t get 200 willing participants. The company recently introduced a mandate for employees to return to the office for five days each week, which could entice staffers with one foot out the door.
This is just the latest cost-cutting measure by Ubisoft, as the company has been experiencing difficulties for months. It shut down its Halifax studio just 16 days after employees entered into a unionization agreement. Last week, it shuttered its Stockholm studio and announced various restructuring efforts at several other developers under its umbrella.
It also announced the cancellation of six games, including the long-awaited Prince of Persia: Sands of Time remake. It didn’t reveal the other five games that were scrapped. Ubisoft did announce, however, that seven additional games were being delayed. Inexplicably, Beyond Good and Evil 2 wasn’t cancelled, so we have that to (one day) look forward to.
Ubisoft’s stock has absolutely plunged in the past several years. The company was riding high at $20 per share in 2021, but now the stock rests at around $1 per share.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/ubisoft-proposes-even-more-layoffs-after-last-weeks-studio-closures-and-game-cancellations-192703241.html?src=rss