Update []:
Things are escalating fast at developer Rockstar, where approximately 40 staff were fired last week in a move labelled by the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain as “union busting”.
The developer responded that staff were sacked for “discussing confidential information in a public forum”. It’s alleged that organising members were part of a private Discord, with the only outsiders being labour organisers.
And now it’s taken to the streets in both London and Edinburgh to protest against the dismissals.
Clips and images on social media show affected staff calling for their immediate reinstatement and back pay compensation.
One sacked staff member told IGN:
“All because I talked with colleagues in a private union chat. We weren’t leaking anything or trying to harm the company. 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.”
Politicians are now getting involved, with Ross Greer of the Scottish Greens insisting Rockstar “reinstate” the impacted employees and “get around the table [to] give your staff the pay and conditions they deserve for making you billions”.
Original Story: Rockstar management was underfire last week after sacking approximately 30-40 employees across its UK and Canadian offices.
Labour leaders alleged that the firings were related to the staffers’ attempt to unionise, but the GTA giant has hit back at the claims.
In a statement to Bloomberg, the firm said it took action because the affected had been sharing corporate secrets in a forum accessed by non-employees.
Its statement reads:
“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. This was in no way related to people’s right to join a union or engage in union activities.”
All impacted employees were allegedly part of a private trade union chat group on Discord, with the only outsiders said to be labour organisers.
The Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain had previously described Rockstar’s actions as “one of the most blatant and ruthless acts of union busting in the history of the games industry”.
Alex Marshall, the president of the union, has since accused the company of being “afraid of hard-working staff privately discussing exercising their rights for a fairer workplace and a collective voice”.
Ever since a massive GTA 6 leak in 2022, Rockstar has been particularly strict, infamously forcing employees back into the office in the aftermath of the pandemic under the guise of security.
