Following the latest round of layoffs by Epic Games, which has seen roughly 1,000 employees made redundant, many of the affected staff have begun speaking up about how their lives have been quickly impacted by their loss of work. One such case has been that of the now-former programmer writer Michael (Mike) Prinke, whose wife, Jenni Griffin, took to social media to reveal that Mike has been battling terminal brain cancer and will now lose access to healthcare and life insurance due to being let go by Epic Games. The story quickly caught the attention of Fortnite fans and broader communities online, and the CEO of Epic Games has finally jumped in to officially comment on the unfortunate situation.
The recent layoffs at Epic Games have been attributed to less-than-stellar player engagement with the company’s flagship battle royale, as well as other areas of its gaming business. Despite massive pop culture crossovers with beloved franchises, Fortnite has seemingly fallen short of corporate expectations, leading executives to turn to workforce reductions as a solution for struggling financial reports behind the scenes. While Fortnite itself has already felt the impact of these changes, announcing that multiple game modes are set to be shut down for good, the 1,000 laid-off employees are experiencing more challenging consequences in the aftermath of the cutbacks.
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Epic Games CEO Responds to Terminated Employee Battling Cancer
Shortly after the mass Epic Games layoffs were announced, Jenni Griffin shared a post on social media in which she expressed both shock and heartbreak at the news that her husband, Mike Prinke, had lost his job. She revealed that Mike has been battling terminal brain cancer, and without his healthcare coverage and life insurance provided by his employment, the family is now facing a grim outlook on how they will manage his eventual passing. Griffin believed that “if the people who made this decision understood the full human impact, they would not have intended this outcome.” She then asked for help sharing the story, in the hope that it would reach someone at Epic Games and perhaps encourage the company to provide assistance. Luckily, Jenni Griffin’s plea managed to reach CEO Tim Sweeney, who has issued a formal statement on Mike’s situation.
Tim Sweeney responded to a social media post resharing Griffin’s story, stating that “Epic is in contact with the family and will solve the insurance for them.” He noted that there is a “high confidentiality around medical information,” which did not influence the decision to layoff Mike Prinke. Sweeney apologized “to everyone for not recognizing this terribly painful situation and handling it in advance.” It is believed that Prinke’s healthcare coverage would have been provided for up to six months after his termination, though Griffin did state that his life insurance would have ended immediately. She also confirmed that Mike would not have been able to apply for a new insurance plan, due to his terminal brain cancer being a pre-existing condition. Griffin’s original post has since been updated to confirm that Epic is in touch with the family, offering a bit of positivity despite the changes at Epic Games.
Who’s That Character?
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Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
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Mike Prinke is far from the only employee whose family is now facing a difficult time ahead following the Epic Games layoffs, and many question what would have happened if Jenni Griffin’s post did not gain the necessary support to grab Tim Sweeney’s attention. Epic Games is among dozens of major studios to announce studio closures, employee cutbacks, and even multiple video game cancellations. As global economies continue to face unstable times, industry workers and audiences alike are keeping their fingers crossed that the woes battering the video game industry will cease sooner rather than later.
- Released
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September 26, 2017
- ESRB
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T for Teen – Diverse Content: Discretion Advised, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
