EA Admits Company Can “Do Better” Amid Layoffs
Following Activision a month ago, the publisher has laid off 350 employees.
Barely a month after Activision hit the headlines due to laying off nearly 800 employees, EA have followed suit, with over 350 members of staff set to lose their jobs in the coming weeks. According to sources inside the publishing house, the firings are primarily set to hit the Marketing and Publishing departments, as the company in general plans to lower their presence in Russia and Japan.
The news comes after a rather tumultuous year for EA, whose major releases haven't resonated commercially or critically and whose public image has only worsened after cancelling yet another Star Wars game. According to an internal e-mail, written by CEO Andrew Wilson and sent out to staff, alongside a subsequent press release, the company seems to recognise its own failings, saying:
"We have a vision to be the World’s Greatest Games Company. If we’re honest with ourselves, we’re not there right now. We have work to do with our games, our player relationships, and our business.”
Still, the desire to be better doesn't soften the blow for the hundreds set to lose their jobs, and while EA has committed to helping those let go find jobs within the company and elsewhere, it doesn't mask that this kind of mass restructuring is par for the course in the industry. Despite enjoying one record year after the next, these kinds of layoffs happen time after time, and are tragically becoming normalised as just "part of the job".
Publishers need to change, and the first step in becoming the "World's Greatest Games Company" should be in looking after the employees that can make that possible in the first place.