Tafep not taking action against Ubisoft after probe into claims of workplace harassment, salary disputes
BY
CHARLENE GOH
Published January 27, 2022Updated January 27, 2022
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SINGAPORE — After an investigation into claims of salary disparities and workplace harassment at video game company Ubisoft, no action will be taken against it.
The Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (Tafep) said in a statement on Thursday (Jan 27) that the French company behind video game franchises Assassins' Creed and Just Dance has a structured process to remunerate its employees fairly.
Employees’ salaries were performance-based and disparities were reasonably justified by differences in experience or seniority.
Tafep also noted that the company took appropriate action when harassment reports were found to be true and arrangements were made to minimise future work interactions between both parties.
The alliance first received an anonymous feedback on Ubisoft last July, which made reference to a report posted on Kotaku, a gaming community website.
The report posted on Kotaku was penned by Mr Ethan Gach and based on interviews with over 20 current and former employees. It claimed that Ubisoft did not pay Singapore junior developers “enough to move out of their parents’ homes” and the salary gap between residents and expats were “insane”.
There was also a “French ceiling”, which made it difficult for employees from other countries who did not speak the language to succeed, especially if they were from Southeast Asia or were women.
The report also mentioned Ubisoft’s former managing director Hugues Ricour, who was accused of sexually harassing a female employee.
He has since been demoted and removed from the Singapore office, after several reports of sexual harassment were found to be true.
TODAY has reached out to Ubisoft Singapore for comment.
