Rockstar’s Claims of GTA 6 Feature Leaks Disputed by IWGB Union

In a developing dispute between Rockstar Games and the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB), tensions continue to escalate following the dismissal of over 30 employees from the renowned game studio. The union has condemned the firings as “ruthless” while maintaining that the affected developers should have been legally protected when discussing their working conditions in private forums.

The controversy has sparked international attention, reaching as high as the UK Parliament and Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who recently called it a “deeply concerning case” and pledged to investigate the alleged union-busting activities.

At the heart of the dispute are conflicting narratives about why the employees were terminated. Rockstar Games initially claimed the dismissals were due to internal leaks of “confidential information” and explicitly stated they were “in no way related to people’s right to join a union.” The company specifically accused former developers of “distributing and discussing confidential information in a public forum.”

The IWGB has strongly contested this characterization, arguing that the so-called “public forum” was actually a private Discord server where employees were discussing workplace conditions—activities that should be protected under labor laws. As the dispute intensified, Rockstar doubled down, alleging that employees had leaked “specific game features from upcoming and unannounced titles,” while dismissing union-busting allegations as “false and misleading.”

In response to Rockstar’s latest statement, the IWGB told GameSpot that the company’s claims were “littered with falsehoods and disinformation” and accused the studio of deliberately “mischaracterizing” the actions of terminated employees. “They have given multiple, conflicting reasons to explain why the workers were fired, as if attempting to reverse engineer a rationale for the dismissals,” the union stated.

The IWGB further challenged Rockstar’s narrative, saying: “Once again, they have chosen to mischaracterize workers speaking about their working conditions in a private forum as ‘leaking information.'” The union concluded that the company’s statements appeared to be “a desperate attempt to deflect from the global scrutiny they have come under over the last month.”

The controversy has attracted significant political attention in the UK. Last month, the issue was raised in Parliament, with a Member of Parliament questioning what steps could be taken to support the dismissed developers. More recently, Prime Minister Starmer acknowledged the seriousness of the case and committed to examining the allegations of union busting.

This dispute unfolds against the backdrop of broader instability in the video game industry, which has seen numerous layoffs, studio closures, and labor disputes over the past two years. Rockstar Games, known for blockbuster franchises like Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption, is currently developing the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6, making any internal disruption particularly noteworthy for both industry observers and gaming enthusiasts.

The outcome of this confrontation could have significant implications for labor relations in the gaming industry, particularly regarding employees’ rights to discuss workplace conditions and the boundaries between confidential business information and protected speech about employment circumstances.

For the dismissed developers, the resolution of this dispute could determine not only their immediate employment prospects but also set precedents for how similar cases might be handled in the future. As both sides remain firmly entrenched in their positions, the gaming community and labor advocates continue to monitor developments closely.