"Rockstar, you're disgusting": Fired GTA 6 devs protest outside studio offices after dozens of unionizing employees were accused of leaking "confidential information"

GTA 6
(Image credit: Rockstar Games)

The Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB) and laid-off GTA 6 employees, among other supporters, have been protesting outside of Rockstar North and Take-Two's London office.

Over the last week, Rockstar Games has been accused of union-busting after firing over 30 workers who were all said to either be current union members or involved in unionization efforts at the developer. IWGB claimed the firings were "the most ruthless act of union busting in the history of the UK games industry."

"Rockstar, you're disgusting / We charge you with union busting" was the rallying chant of today's protest outside of parent company Take-Two's London offices.

Speaking to the crowd at the London demonstration, one affected worker said she was dismissed "without warning, without evidence, and without a chance to speak for myself."

The Scottish Green Party's co-leader Ross Greer also attended the Rockstar North protest and called on the developer to reinstate the laid-off workers, "then get around the table and give your staff the pay and conditions they deserve for making you billions," in a social media post.

Posters at the protests call the firings "Grand Theft Employment" and throw the company's own memes back at it: "All you had to do was follow the damn law, Rockstar."

"Next year, Grand Theft Auto 6 is expected to make upwards of $10 billion," IWGB Chair Spring Mcparlin-Jones wrote in a press release. "That's enough to end world hunger for a year. Such a flagrant attack on workers' rights from such a valuable studio sends a very clear and shocking message to the world, that money matters more than people." IWGB President Alex Marshall said the group would "pursue every legal claim possible" to reinstate the former GTA 6 employees.

After sending fans into a frenzy with a GTA 6 PlayStation Store update, Rockstar has removed the GTA+ ad that had hopefuls convinced trailer 3 was imminent

Freelance contributor

Kaan freelances for various websites including Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamer, and this one, Gamesradar. He particularly enjoys writing about spooky indies, throwback RPGs, and anything that's vaguely silly. Also has an English Literature and Film Studies degree that he'll soon forget.

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