Blog Post 4: Toxic Workplaces

In the article titled "Almost a Year After Toxic Workplace Allegations, Ubisoft Employees Reportedly Say 'Nothing Has Changed' written by Rebekah Valentine for IGN on May 4th, 2021, she describes how the French publication “Le Télégramme” has reported that Ubisoft has made little progress in addressing the harassment and toxic workplace allegations across its studios and departments, despite public-facing actions taken by the company.

The report highlights that many of those accused of harassment and abusive behaviour still held positions at Ubisoft, including Nadeo studio lead Florent Castelnérac and former Singapore studio lead Hugues Ricour. The report also notes that "nothing has changed" in Ubisoft's Canadian studio, despite the appointment of the new studio head Christophe Derennes to replace Yannis Mallat, who left the company following allegations of creating a toxic and abusive workplace. Ubisoft has taken action in an attempt to address the allegations against the company, including replacing the former director of HR, Cécile Cornet with Chief People officer Anika Grant and the appointment of Raashi Sikka as VP of global diversity and inclusion.
However, an elected representative from Ubisoft's social and economic committee reportedly told Le Télégramme that they don't "expect anything to come out of these appointments," given that many members of HR who actively worked to cover up and ignore issues while protecting executives are said to remain with the company. 
The report also notes that while Ubisoft has implemented a new code of conduct and provided training for its staff, management has reportedly ignored various employee-led initiatives to improve matters, such as efforts to hire more women. Ubisoft had previously committed to "major changes" following the scandals. In response to a request for comment from GamesIndustry.biz, a Ubisoft spokesperson said that the company has implemented "major changes" across its organization, internal processes, and procedures to ensure a safe, inclusive, and respectful working environment for all team members. However, the report suggests that much more needs to be done to address the culture at the company and ensure that employees are protected from harassment and abuse.

In a later update to the article, it notes that Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot wrote a blog post detailing steps the company has taken to repair its workplace culture following reports the previous week that indicated that little progress had been made he stated that “Ubisoft has strengthened its anti-harassment and non-discrimination policies, created new HR processes, and made new hires for Chief People Officer and VP of Global Diversity & Inclusion.” Guillemot stressed his personal commitment to continue improving the company's workplace culture.

This article applies to other workplaces in two major ways.
First, it highlights the importance of taking allegations of workplace harassment and toxicity seriously along with emphasizing the need for businesses to take immediate action when allegations are brought forward regardless of who the allegations are against.
Secondly, the article applies as it emphasizes the importance of holding leadership accountable for fostering a safe and respectful workplace; the entire leadership team including executives should have been active in preventing and addressing harassment and workplace toxicity and leading by example to prevent those types of toxic behaviours from occurring in the first place.
In summary, businesses can learn from Ubisoft's example to address harassment and toxicity by taking steps to create a safe, respectful, and inclusive workplace culture.

This article applies to me personally because I have worked in and left toxic workplaces in the past, the experience I had was a negative one that had a major impact on my mental health, and I struggled to find a new job that met my financial needs when the workplace became toxic enough that I decided to leave; the experience set me back in terms of my progression in my career at the time and something I will be on the lookout for once I’m back in the workforce.


Valentine, R. (2021, May 24). Almost a Year After Toxic Workplace Allegations, Ubisoft Employees Reportedly Say “Nothing Has Changed” - IGN. IGN. https://www.ign.com/articles/almost-a-year-after-toxic-workplace-allegations-ubisoft-employees-reportedly-say-nothing-has-changed 


Comments

  1. Tabitha Harper6 April 2023 at 09:20

    Personally, I can't believe Ubisoft has not grown or learned from their past mistakes for toxicity in the work place! Leadership and management are definitely not the same thing in this case, because a behaviour of leadership is accountability. Perhaps as we grow as a society, allegations and accountability will be taken more serious as we educate ourselves in situations like Ubisoft. Great post!

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