“This Is a Fight for Our Lives”: Fired Rockstar Employees Prepare Response After Union Scandal

The controversy surrounding Rockstar Games has reignited after the dismissal of more than thirty developers involved in GTA 6. The Independent Workers of Great Britain (IWGB) union has accused the studio of “unprecedented suppression of union organizing.”

Former Rockstar employees and IWGB representatives held a series of protests outside Rockstar North and Take-Two offices in Edinburgh. As reported by the People Make Games channel, the outlet initially planned to cover the formation of the Rockstar employees’ union but learned of the layoffs almost simultaneously with Bloomberg’s investigation.

According to Take-Two, the developers were fired for “gross misconduct” and “sharing confidential information in a public space.” However, the union claims that the discussions took place on a private Discord server, where employees were coordinating organizational matters and speaking with legal advisors.

IWGB describes Rockstar’s actions as “one of the clearest cases of worker suppression in the last twenty years.” The organization has already filed a formal appeal demanding full reinstatement of all dismissed employees along with compensation for lost wages.

According to an IWGB representative known as Fred, the incident has deeply demoralized the remaining team members: “The atmosphere is shattered and filled with fear,” he said, “when the team should be more united than ever ahead of GTA 6’s completion.”

Rockstar and Take-Two have not provided further comments. The company’s last statement addressed the delay of GTA 6 from May to November 2026, explaining the move as necessary for “additional polish.”