--- title: Rockstar Game Workers Union launches publicly after... description: Rockstar Games fired 34 UK and Canada-based employees in October 2025, with the IWGB alleging it was union busting after workers discussed workplace conditions... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-game-workers-union-launches-publicly-after-months-of-firings-and-legal-battles-9pis9on23 twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Rockstar Game Workers Union launches publicly after months of firings and legal battles | daily.dev og:description: Rockstar Games fired 34 UK and Canada-based employees in October 2025, with the IWGB alleging it was union busting after workers discussed workplace conditions... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-game-workers-union-launches-publicly-after-months-of-firings-and-legal-battles-9pis9on23 og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/9pis9On23.png og:image:alt: Rockstar Game Workers Union launches publicly after months of firings and legal battles og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Rockstar Game Workers Union launches publicly after months of firings and legal battles **[Collections](https://daily.dev/sources/collections)** · 2 min read · 1 upvotes · 3 comments ## Summary Rockstar Games fired 34 UK and Canada-based employees in October 2025, with the IWGB alleging it was union busting after workers discussed workplace conditions on a private Discord server. Despite losing those members, the union rebuilt and formally launched in May 2026 as the Rockstar Game Workers Union (RGWU). The group is fundraising for legal fees and pushing for pay transparency, flexible working, and an end to crunch culture — all while Take-Two anticipates ~$8 billion in revenue from the upcoming GTA VI launch. An employment tribunal case is ongoing, with a final hearing expected later in 2026. ## Content ## Background In October 2025, Rockstar Games dismissed 34 UK and Canada-based employees for alleged gross misconduct. The Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB) said those fired were union members who had been discussing workplace conditions on a private Discord server managed by the IWGB. Rockstar and parent company Take-Two Interactive maintained the dismissals were about leaking confidential game information. The IWGB called it the most blatant act of union busting in the UK games industry's history. ## What happened next The dispute moved quickly. The IWGB filed legal action in November 2025. The firings drew enough attention that UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the situation as "deeply concerning," and the matter was raised in Parliament. In January 2026, a Glasgow Employment Tribunal rejected the IWGB's request for interim relief - meaning the dismissed workers wouldn't receive pay while the case proceeds. The IWGB was clear that this preliminary ruling doesn't affect the main case, which is still expected to reach a final hearing later in 2026. ## The union goes public Despite losing over 30 members to the firings, the union rebuilt its membership and in May 2026 formally launched as the Rockstar Game Workers Union (RGWU), a subsidiary of the IWGB. The RGWU is now fundraising for legal fees and has set out its priorities: justice for the dismissed workers, pay transparency, flexible working arrangements, and an end to crunch culture. The timing is notable. Take-Two is anticipating roughly $8 billion in revenue from the upcoming GTA VI launch - a game that Rockstar's workforce helped build. ## Where things stand The employment tribunal case is ongoing. The RGWU says its membership has grown stronger since the firings, not weaker. The final hearing is expected later this year. ## Community discussion Top comments from developers on daily.dev. **@andradei** · 0 upvotes > That's such a bad sign for all involved. **@devdavidt** · 0 upvotes > And we will wait even longer now? 🤨 **@ivan0x9** · 0 upvotes > I guess the Take 2 executive board along with Rockstar planned to lay people off in order to cash in most of the money for themselves and their shareholders. This union that happened came as an good opportunity for them to use as an excuse for layoffs. ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Rockstar suffers legal blow in union busting dispute](https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-suffers-legal-blow-in-union-busting-dispute-kfyxqqfau) · Game Developer · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-game-workers-union-launches-publicly-after-months-of-firings-and-legal-battles-9pis9on23) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Rockstar Game Workers Union launches publicly after months of firings and legal battles","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-game-workers-union-launches-publicly-after-months-of-firings-and-legal-battles-9pis9on23","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-game-workers-union-launches-publicly-after-months-of-firings-and-legal-battles-9pis9on23"},"datePublished":"2026-06-01T12:31:47.486Z","dateModified":"2026-06-07T20:08:51.112Z","description":"Rockstar Games fired 34 UK and Canada-based employees in October 2025, with the IWGB alleging it was union busting after workers discussed workplace conditions...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/fa8a123336726ba86b708af05d247090?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/fa8a123336726ba86b708af05d247090?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Collections","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Collections","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--fk_6ycEi--/f_auto,q_auto/v1780996001/logos/collections?_a=BAMAMiWQ0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/collections"},"commentCount":3,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-game-workers-union-launches-publicly-after-months-of-firings-and-legal-battles-9pis9on23","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":1},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":3}],"keywords":"","timeRequired":"PT2M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Collections","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/collections"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Rockstar Game Workers Union launches publicly after months of firings and legal battles"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/rockstar-game-workers-union-launches-publicly-after-months-of-firings-and-legal-battles-9pis9on23","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","text":"That’s such a bad sign for all involved.","datePublished":"2026-06-01T13:08:19.139Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/9pis9On23#c-IpLZP2Kw4","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Isaac de Andrade","url":"https://daily.dev/andradei","image":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/2653546?v=4"}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"And we will wait even longer now? 🤨","datePublished":"2026-06-02T09:22:41.801Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/9pis9On23#c-mjDdzq7s9","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"DavidDev","url":"https://daily.dev/devdavidt","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--jxmKsIov--/f_auto/v1788950401/avatars/avatar_HK0Qdu9ttIpcoDHx7zrHk?_a=BAMAMicg0"}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"I guess the Take 2 executive board along with Rockstar planned to lay people off in order to cash in most of the money for themselves and their shareholders. This union that happened came as an good opportunity for them to use as an excuse for layoffs.","datePublished":"2026-06-02T12:23:02.956Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/9pis9On23#c-sQin6bndM","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Ivan Mršić","url":"https://daily.dev/ivan0x9","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--pBWsDcTy--/f_auto/v1768396755/avatars/avatar_irmdLljsvSnDMcVzPGDBN?_a=BAMAMiZW0"}}]} ```