Rockstar's Battle With Union Over Fired Devs Goes To Court

"As reported by Video Games Chronicle, Rockstar and the IWGB went before the court earlier this week, where the latter requested that the fired workers be given "interim relief" while the legal drama plays out. If granted, that would place the affected workers back on Rockstar's payroll and allow some to keep their visas that were reliant on their jobs. The court will reportedly decide on the matter before the end of the week."

""We have consistently made clear that we took necessary action against a group of individuals across the UK and Canada who discussed highly confidential information, including relating to game features from upcoming and unannounced titles, in an insecure and public social channel," a Rockstar spokesperson told IGN. "This was a breach of long-standing and well-understood confidentiality policies. This channel contained at least 25 non-Rockstar employees, including employees of competitor game developers, a video games industry journalist, as well as dozens of anonymous, unidentifiable members. Meanwhile, employees who posted union-supportive messages, but who did not breach confidentiality policies, were not dismissed.""

Rockstar dismissed over thirty developers in the United Kingdom and Canada near the end of October 2025, citing gross misconduct. The Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain accused Rockstar of union-busting for laying off workers who were organizing with the union. The IWGB asked a UK court for interim relief to have the affected workers placed back on payroll and to preserve visas tied to their jobs. The court is expected to decide before the end of the week. Rockstar contends that individuals shared highly confidential information in an insecure, public social channel and says non-breaching union supporters were not dismissed.

Read at GameSpot