The Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) led protests outside the offices of Rockstar North and Take-Two Interactive in London and Edinburgh yesterday after accusations of union busting.
Speaking to The Independent on the picket line outside Rockstar North, IWGB organiser Fred Carter said the affected employees “were shocked” to see Rockstar “show such blatant disrespect and disregard for the rights of workers to have a union.”
“They’ve been fired for exercising their legal rights to speak to each other about their pay and conditions, to build a union in their workplace, to build a fairer, better workplace where the people who build games have a voice in how they’re made,” said Carter.
“People didn’t know what was going on, that their co-workers were being torn from their desks and marched out of the building. I think [there was] real outrage, loss, grief.”
He continued: “I’ve stood with people while they cried this week, I’ve sat in people’s kitchens because they’re too afraid to talk about their work in public or outside the workplace.
“This is a community that’s in shock and in anger.”
One of the dismissed employees claimed they were let go “without warning, without evidence, and without a chance to speak for myself.”
“We weren’t leaking anything or trying to harm the company,” they said (via IGN). “We were supporting each other, trying to understand our workplace and make it better.
“To lose my job for that is deeply unfair. No one should be punished for being part of a union or for speaking honestly about their work.”
Last Thursday, the IWGB claimed Rockstar dismissed roughly 30 employees in the UK and Canada who were “either members of the union or attempting to organise.”
In response, Rockstar said it “took action against a small number of individuals who were found to be distributing and discussing confidential information in a public forum”.
This forum was reportedly the IWGB Game Workers Union Discord channel.
The IWGB said the only non-Rockstar members in the group were union organisers, and refuted “that confidential information was shared publicly.”
Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two Interactive published their latest financial results yesterday, reporting significant increases in revenue and net bookings.
It also announced that Grand Theft Auto 6 had been delayed for a second time, and is now expected to launch on November 19, 2026.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said he is “confident” in the new launch date.
“We are trying very hard to deliver the most extraordinary interactive entertainment experience ever created, Rockstar and we are aligned on that, we’re feeling really good about it,” said Zelnick.
“Occasionally across our entire company, including 2K and our mobile business, at times more time is required to polish a title to ensure that it’s released in its best possible form,” he added.
This article has been amended to correct the date of GTA 6’s release from November 26 to November 19.
