Posted in: Games, Ubisoft, Video Games | Tagged: Maxime Béland, Tommy François, ubisoft

Maxime Béland Resigns From Ubisoft After Abuse Allegations

Published Sun, 05 Jul 2020 14:10:36 -0500

Over the weekend, Maxime Béland officially resigned from Ubisoft, formally leaving the company after abuse allegations arose. For those of you not in the loop, about a week and a half ago, allegations arose within the company against both Béland and Tommy François, prompting the company to release a statement saying they would be investigating the claims made against both men. It also prompted the company to announce several changes in the way they would be conducting business moving forward, which was sent out in an internal letter from the company's CEO. But it appears that Béland has chosen not to wait for the results of the investigation and has decided to depart the company on his own terms. The news came from GameIndustry.biz, who received word from the publisher stating that Béland's resignation was "effective immediately", and that "Despite his resignation, we continue to investigate the allegations made against him."

Ubisoft is currently investigating abuse allegations against two employees.

Below is the statement from the internal memo released about the investigations, which we're guessing may be anywhere from a few weeks to a few months before they're wrapped up. Tommy François has not been heard from since these allegations arose, and if he doesn't follow suit with Béland in the next few days, we're guessing he'll be waiting until the end of the investigation.

Ongoing Investigations into Allegations

In response to recent allegations, we launched a series of investigations that are being led by independent third parties. I know that many of you are eager to hear the results of these investigations. However, we must take the time necessary to ensure that they are carried out with the required rigor. When they are concluded, all appropriate actions will be taken. Should additional allegations or claims be brought to our attention, we will fully investigate those, as well. In addition, Ubisoft has set up an online confidential alert platform enabling employees as well as external individuals to report harassment, discrimination and other inappropriate behaviors, including those that infringe on our Code of Fair Conduct. To ensure anonymity and confidentiality, this platform is administered by a third party, Whispli, and complaints are reviewed by a committee of CSR and legal experts.

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