The gaming community is angered yet again; this time, it is Bungie layoffs that have sparked outrage. Many employees turned up to work today to be met with an email informing them of the decision that they are to be laid, not even to be told in person. The sheer cowardice and lack of empathy in this decision is disgusting, to put it mildly.
Right before the festive season, the timing of this decision will no doubt enhance the anger of employees who will have to break the news to family and loved ones that there may be no Christmas this year. Unfortunately for them, it appears that corporate greed wins outright and sees hard-working individuals viewed as a dispensable tool, to be tossed away when no longer needed.
Bungie Layoffs
The news was shared on social media site X (formerly Twitter) by @PaulTassi who advised that a source had provided him with the details of the Bungie layoffs. In the post, he shares an image that states that the decision from Bungie was not so that Sony would replace the employees with their people.
The decision came directly from Bungie management and there was also a note to say that employee benefits (not including Healthcare) would only last up to the end of the month. Which at the time of writing, would mean today, 31 October.
Bungie is said to be preparing to lose 8% of its workforce, which would account for around 100 employees, and the decision behind this is due to the company missing revenue by a massive 45%. This according to sources is due to the popularity of the flagship title Destiny 2, taking a steady decline and affecting sales.
Perhaps the most telling part of this decision, however, is the mention of unvested shares. With the Sony acquisition of 2022, many employees would receive unvested shares for staying with the company after the sale for a set period of years. However, if an employee were to leave the company or be fired, the shares would revert to Bungie.
As you can no doubt surmise, this is what is happening to a lot of the employees who have been affected by the Bungie layoffs. Understandably there was a complete uproar from the community who voiced their disgust at the decision;
“Man this is incredibly messed up. Feel so bad for everyone who was let go” – @BenjiSales
“Those shares should be surrendered to the employees. This is terrible.” – @InfernoOmni
It does seem that from this decision, the employees who are being laid off stand to lose thousands of pounds when these unvested shares revert to the company. With the current financial climate and cost of living crisis, people would be relying on these in the hope that they could be cashed in at some point or even to enjoy the equity that the shares would provide.
It’s not the first time the company has courted controversy and Bungie was subject to a 2021 report in which there were issues raised about a male-dominated work culture that was discriminatory of female employees as far back as 2011. CEO Pete Parsons released a response to this, stating that the company was taking steps to improve workplace culture.
However, it is this Bungie layoff decision that has proven the most controversial, and the layoff of famed Destiny 2 composer, Michael Salvatori, has seen many in the community stunned. Salvatori described the last 24 hours as being ‘crazy’ and that many of his friends had been let go from the company.
In the run-up to the festive season, the Bungie layoffs are a horrific decision no matter how you view it. Many of these employees will have families who depend on that income for gifts and possibly traveling to see family. Whilst the package does take them up to mid-December, there is no doubt that with the uncertainty of what lies beyond, many will have an unhappy Christmas.
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