Recently one Polish developer came under fire for a strange request made to its employees. According to what was indicated via LinkedIn, creative director Jacek Piórkowski of Spectrum Studio expected employees to take part in sauna sessions, naked of course.
Everything emerged thanks to a narrative designer and screenwriter – Aleksandra Wolna – who revealed the thing online.
The complete explanation of mandatory saunas
Wolna explains that, while she was looking for work, she was approached by Piórkowski. The woman did some research and discovered the request related to the sauna and she therefore preferred to “politely” refuse. However, the Creative Director tried a new approach at a later time: at that point the woman told him the reason for the first refusal.
Piórkowski then began to explain that the request is perfectly legitimate and that there is nothing wrong that is required of employees. According to him, the point is not so much to undress the employees, but to allow them to experiment with various types of sauna. Nudity is a necessity because in some cases the humidity is so high, according to him, that you risk a fungal infection if you are covered with a cloth. In some cases therefore participants are required to be naked.
All this talk is linked to the fact that Spectrum Studio is working on a video game related to saunas (with various sources of inspiration, from Life is Strange to Heart of Darkness), then asks its employees to experience various types of saunas on their own skin. According to Wolna, however, it is very different to expect a candidate to have the appropriate knowledge and to be naked in activities required for work.
Piórkowski later stated: “My girls from the Fiction division they had to come to the sauna with me to come up with a great script to use as a basis… Technically, you can do it without it, but I love the fact that they were able to use their sauna experience to write great scenes.”
In the end, however, Piórkowski apologized for what happened, stating that the point was not to “embarrass, hurt, offend, or show disrespect to Wolna.” She also claimed that she had chosen the wrong words and that the phrase “my girls from the Fiction division” was only to underline that at that time the team was made up only of women.
The Creative Director explained himself to be very fond of saunas and who is looking for people who share the feeling about everything related to saunas. He also believes having experience with the subject helps him understand sauna culture and therefore make a better game.
He then states that he realized that the way he explained it initially seemed to imply that he expected the candidates to take a sauna naked with your boss. He then clarifies that this is not the point and that employees can only have saunas with people of their own gender if they prefer, as long as the final experience is genuine.
Now, Piórkowski is consulting with an HR Specialist regarding the matter to be able to explain everything correctly. Wolna ultimately said he accepted the apology.
