- Rockstar Games says its recent firings were not an attempt to stop employees from unionizing
- The studio claims that the staff members’ positions were terminated because they were “distributing and discussing confidential information in a public forum”
- Over 30 employees from its UK and Canada offices were fired
Rockstar Games has denied accusations that its recent firings were due to workers’ attempt to unionize, and instead, because they were of employees leaking company secrets.
Last week, the studio behind Grand Theft Auto 6 fired over 30 employees at its UK and Canada offices, which parent company Take-Two said was “for gross misconduct” according to Bloomberg.
However, the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) claimed that Rockstar terminated the staff positions in an attempt to disrupt workers from unionizing, saying in a response post on X / Twitter that the developer is guilty of “union busting.”
“This is the most ruthless act of union busting in the history of the UK games industry. Yesterday, @RockstarGames fired over 30 employees for union activity,” the IWGB wrote. “We won’t back down, and we’re not scared – we will fight for every member to be reinstated.”
Bloomberg also reports that the employees were part of a private trade union chat group on Discord and were all either union members or trying to organize within Rockstar.
Now, in a new statement to the publication, Take-Two has denied the claims and stated the firings were due to employees leaking “confidential information.”
“Last week, we took action against a small number of individuals who were found to be distributing and discussing confidential information in a public forum, a violation of our company policies,” the statement reads.
“This was in no way related to people’s right to join a union or engage in union activities.”
It’s unclear if the confidential information was related to GTA 6, which is slated to launch on May 26, 2026, though Rockstar is no stranger to leaks.
The first GTA 6 trailer leaked one day early, and the studio also suffered a massive breach back in 2022, which confirmed it was working on the next GTA title.
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