Ubisoft Singapore investigated by watchdog over allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination

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Ubisoft Singapore is said to be under investigation by a watchdog group for allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination.

The Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (Tafep) told the Straits Times it was investigating the developer over the links he received on July 23; media coverage on sexual harassment and discrimination.

A July 21 post from Kotaku was directed to former developers, including one who said, “Ubisoft Singapore has always been pretty well known. [internally] to be one of Ubisoft’s worst studios in terms of culture. People would visit [from other studios] and say, what’s wrong here? “

20 staff, former and current, told Kotaku the Singapore branch reportedly was poorly paid and rarely offered raises, rarely promoted anyone in management or creative departments, ignored sexual harassment, had disparities of racial pay, bullying on the part of managers, fostered a feeling of “French ceiling” where those outside France or not speaking French would have a hard time being successful, and an unfriendly HR department.

The terms came from former chief executive Hugues Ricour, who was removed from his post after a management audit following the allegations; including the allegations against himself. However, Ricour was still working for Ubisoft, according to a statement from the developer to Kotaku, later revealed as director of production intelligence at Ubisoft headquarters.

In a statement to Kotaku about the allegations, Ubisoft highlighted the “35 nationalities” that make up the staff and how “40% of expert and lead expert roles are Singaporean or permanent residents.”

Ubisoft says they continue to increase Singaporean leadership and change to promote “a safe and inclusive work environment for all”. However, they also noted that “compensation is determined by role, responsibility, market practices and performance”.

Although Tafep is a watchdog group, if their investigation via interviews and documented evidence is found to violate discrimination laws, the Department of Manpower (MOM) could ban Ubisoft from further Work passes for foreign employees (or renew existing ones) for one to two years. . Tafep is also noted as having the power to force them to implement new policies.

However, sexual harassment including sexual or other assault would lead to a full police investigation; with penalties such as fines, jail time or beatings. The case could still end in civil proceedings by suing for damages or seeking a protection order.

Tafep reportedly urged anyone with knowledge of sexual harassment and assault to report it to the police.

Alleged Environment and Ubisoft Singapore May Explain Why Their Open World Pirate Game Skull & Bones Has Been Delayed Multiple Times [1, 2]. The game would have been rebooted because it did not stand out from Ubisoft’s developing open world game portfolio; is now moving towards a living gaming model (also known as games as a service).

Ubisoft has officially said there will be more Skull & Bones news in 2021, although production was in full swing with a new vision as they dreamed of something bigger.

We have previously reported how, after numerous allegations of sexual misconduct, several Ubisoft executives withdrew during internal investigations. Anonymous sources have also spoken to other outlets, describing the work atmosphere blurring the line between work and leisure, which is said to have led to predatory behavior.

Ubisoft’s vice president of editorial and creative services, Tommy François, was fired from late July to early August. In our previous report, François was one of the executives who had been accused. Other executives have also resigned or been placed on administrative leave.

The allegations against Ismail were one of the first to be brought against Ubisoft executives. Streamer Dani Porter Bridges (MatronEdna) claimed in a tweet that she and Ismail have been dating for a year, despite Ismail’s marriage. Ismail was then allegedly fired from Ubisoft.

Other Ubisoft executives who are no longer with the company include Vice President of Editorial Maxime Bland, Creative Director Serge Hascet, General Manager of Canadian Studios Yannis Mallat, Global Head of Resources human resources Ccile Cornet (all resigned) and the director of public relations. Stone Chin (drawn).

Along with the allegations of sexual harassment, several people have been accused of racist or homophobic comments, as well as close friends of senior executives being promoted to the detriment of women. Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said there would be changes to improve diversity and inclusiveness in the business, as well as the company’s support for Black Lives Matter.

Ubisoft staff also called for industry-wide changes, after Activison Blizzard was also sued for sexual harassment and discrimination.

Image: Skull & Bones via Twitter

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