EA Montreal reorganizes; lays off a 'small number' of employees

EA Montreal has shed a "small number" of employees, due to restructuring to focus on mobile, social, and other digital initiatives.

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EA Montreal, the studio behind a number of games including the Army of Two series, is going through some restructuring. Electronic Arts has confirmed that the mild shake-up has to do with renewing the studio's focus on 'digital initiatives,' including social and mobile endeavors.

The news was unearthed by Games Industry International. "These are routine changes which address the cyclical nature of the game industry," EA corporate communications told the outlet. "A very small number of employees will be impacted -- many will be assigned to new projects at EA, others will leave the company."

It was initially believed--based on the unnamed source who provided the tip--that somewhere in the neighborhood of fifty employees were shed from EA Montreal, but based on EA corporate's response, it seems like many of these employees were reassigned, not laid-off.

"Overall, we expect that EA's headcount will be up at the end of this year," EA said.

From The Chatty
  • reply
    April 26, 2012 4:30 PM

    Jeff Mattas posted a new article, EA Montreal reorganizes; lays off a 'small number' of employees.

    EA Montreal has shed a "small number" of employees, due to restructuring to focus on mobile, social, and other digital initiatives.

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      April 26, 2012 5:21 PM

      EA lay-offs and hire's new people on a conveyor belt. Not because it's restructuring, renewing, refreshing, consolidating, renaming, reinvesting, relevitizing, reconstructing, reassigning, revolving, reevaluating, removing, relocating, their studios, practically on a constant basis, but because people go away when they're sick of working there - some work longer than they should before they realize what they got them selfs into.

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        April 26, 2012 5:25 PM

        Ah, layoffs are different to resignations.

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        April 26, 2012 5:46 PM

        What node said, and I'm pretty sure they lay people off because they can hire other people with a lower pay rate.

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        April 26, 2012 5:56 PM

        Most of the time it isn't to save money, per se. It is the easiest and least-legally-exposing (I couldn't think of another way to say that) way to get rid of people under-performing. It is also probably the best way because most places have laws that require severance (and EA has always been good with that) and better unemployment benefits if you are laid off rather than fired.

        Any place that has hundred of people, thousands world-wide, is going to hire in people who end up not so great or just turn lazy and unmotivated at some point. I've definitely worked with people who should have been laid off / fired.

        The bad lay offs are when it is hundred of people at one time. Those are for money reasons.

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          April 26, 2012 6:15 PM

          EA doesn't care about game quality. EA is the worst place to work ... it's been that way for years.

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            April 26, 2012 6:55 PM

            how many years did you work there?

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            April 27, 2012 9:40 AM

            for comparison have you ever worked at Activison before?

            Yeah not so trendy to bash only EA when you think about it.

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        April 27, 2012 9:51 AM

        wait, so ea's story of 'layoff's is just coverup for people leaving on their own? Again, how old are you?

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        April 27, 2012 10:04 AM

        You remind me of someone who sits down with a copy of the Wall Street Journal, looks like he's reading intently, then looks up and says, "Yep, I know some of these words!"

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