Ubisoft Halifax Dispute Ends With Settlement Vote

Workers dismissed after Ubisoft shut its Halifax studio in January 2026 have approved a confidential settlement negotiated through their union. The Halifax team was known for supporting the Assassin’s Creed mobile franchise. The vote marks the latest development in one of the company’s most closely watched labor disputes.

The vote covered former staff represented by CWA Canada Local 30111, which spoke for 61 unionized employees at the Nova Scotia office. In total, the closure affected 71 people, including 10 non-union workers. The Halifax location had become Ubisoft’s first unionized studio in North America only weeks before operations were ended.

However, the financial terms of the agreement were not released.

The Game and Media Workers Guild of Canada said members voted overwhelmingly to accept the package reached with the publisher. Meanwhile, former employee, Jon Huffman, stated that the announcement caught workers and front-line managers off guard while teams were handling active assignments and new projects. He also noted that employees were “extremely grateful to our union for negotiating this package for us.”

Ubisoft Halifax Deal Lands During Broader Restructuring Effort

Ubisoft previously clarified that the Halifax closure was related to cost optimization and not connected to the union certification process. After the shutdown, former employees organized rallies in Halifax, while the union also filed a complaint with the Nova Scotia Labour Board.

CWA Canada president, Carmel Smyth, commented that the talks were challenging but conducted professionally. She added that the final result was driven by worker solidarity, information sharing among members, and continued pressure to protect their rights.

Ubisoft also secured a €1.16 billion (~$1.3 billion USD) investment from Tencent last year, but the publisher has continued pursuing cost reductions. It has mentioned it plans to lower fixed costs by a further €200M (~$235M) over the next two years.

Likewise, the France-based company has reorganized operations into five creative houses and introduced a global return-to-office mandate. That broader overhaul has coincided with project cancellations, layoffs, and additional site closures.

Altogether, the Halifax outcome may draw attention across the game industry as labor organizing and cost-cutting continue to collide.