Last summer, Ubisoft came under fire from multiple sources accusing the French publisher of promoting a workplace culture built on sexism, misogyny, and sexual misconduct. In what became gaming's biggest #MeToo moment, Ubisoft executives accused of misconduct were either fired or resigned en-masse. The scandal rocked Ubisoft to its very foundations, with CEO Yves Guillemot even addressing the allegations head-on ahead of September's Ubisoft Forward presentation.
Since then, the company has announced numerous initiatives to change its ways, including mandatory anti-sexism training and multiple new appointments such as the recent hiring of Anika Grant as Ubisoft's chief people officer, taking over for outgoing HR director Cécile Cornet.
And how is Ubisoft's work culture doing now after all these initiatives? According to a new report, about the same.
This comes courtesy of an investigation by French publication Le Telegramme, which spoke to numerous current and former Ubisoft employees as well as the Solidaires Informatique Jeu Vidéo, the French union that will take Ubisoft to court next month.
The report notes that many of the people at the heart of the harassment scandal are still working at the company. One, Florent Castelnérac, is even still in the same role as head of studio Nadeo after being accused of harassment by a dozen employees. A union rep said that Ubisoft management is "protecting him."
Hugues Ricour, the former head of Ubisoft Singapore who resigned last November, is still working at Ubisoft according to his LinkedIn profile.
In Ubisoft Montreal, sources said that essentially "nothing has changed" following the departure of Andrée Cossette. He was replaced by Christophe Derennes, who just so happens to be Guillemot’s cousin. Sources said that following Derennes' arrival, multiple new allegations of harassment arose at Ubisoft, but those that came forward were all sidelined in December of last year.
Ubisoft has since responded to the report noting its many accomplishments since last summer, such as hiring more diverse executives to replace the ones that resigned, its ongoing external investigations, its revamped company code of conduct, and its anonymous hotline to report abusive bosses.
"Additional initiatives are underway and are being rolled out over the coming months,” an Ubisoft rep told GamesIndustry.biz. “We are committed to strengthening our culture and values in the long term, to help ensure every team member at Ubisoft is heard, respected, and valued in the workplace."
Perhaps what reveals Ubisoft’s true stance on the scandal is a source saying that Ubisoft has yet to renew its anti-sexism training for 2021 and that new hires aren’t given the training at all.