While we’re now much closer to the launch of Grand Theft Auto 6 than last year, the woes of former Rockstar Games employees, apparently fired for unionizing, continue. In a recent development, the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWB), which represents the developers, asked a judge during a preliminary hearing to provide them with interim relief.
This would effectively make them a part of Rockstar Games’ payroll, thus providing them support before a full hearing. Perhaps more importantly, it would also reinstate their work visas and offer a significant amount of stress relief.
Even if they don’t receive interim relief, the IWGB told IGN it remains “confident in the strength of the case we have brought against Rockstar Games.”
“We hope this week’s tribunal will grant urgently needed relief to the workers whose lives were turned upside down by Rockstar’s brutal union-busting, leaving them and their families without incomes, without secure futures, and in some cases without even the right to remain in the country they have made their home.
“However, no matter the outcome of this interim hearing, we remain confident in the strength of the case we have brought against Rockstar Games. We reiterate our firm belief that Rockstar broke the law when it summarily dismissed 31 of our members, and we look forward now to the day we face them in court for a full and substantive tribunal hearing.
“Rockstar hoped to quickly and quietly wipe out a group of workers who were organising for better conditions. Instead, their dismissal of 31 union members captured the world’s attention and ignited an unprecedented uprising of global solidarity. This case is not just about the suffering of the 31 people who lost their livelihoods in the blink of an eye. This is about the arrogance of a company like Rockstar thinking that its size and profitability grant it an unlimited licence to abuse its workers and to do so with impunity.
“Whether or not interim relief is granted this week, we will continue fighting in the courts and on the streets until we see justice, for the fired Rockstar workers and for workers everywhere fighting for a fairer future.”
Of course, a spokesperson for Rockstar “categorically” denied the claim and reiterated the company’s earlier stance – that it terminated the affected employees for sharing “highly confidential information” in an “insecure and public social channel.”
“We have consistently made clear that we took necessary action against a group of individuals across the UK and Canada who discussed highly confidential information, including relating to game features from upcoming and unannounced titles, in an insecure and public social channel. This was a breach of long-standing and well-understood confidentiality policies.
“This channel contained at least 25 non-Rockstar employees, including employees of competitor game developers, a video games industry journalist, as well as dozens of anonymous, unidentifiable members. Meanwhile, employees who posted union-supportive messages, but who did not breach confidentiality policies, were not dismissed.
“We regret that these dismissals were necessary; however, confidentiality is fundamental to everything Rockstar Games does. Global interest in our games is unparalleled. Even the smallest leak of any information relating to our products and practices can cause major commercial and creative damage — as we have seen in the past — and damage the experience of our loyal players and dedicated team. This was never about union membership. We have always taken a zero-tolerance approach to unauthorized releases of information — and we always will.”
Alongside denying claims of union-busting, Rockstar also said it didn’t maintain a “blacklist.” When it called in the employees to terminate them, it was apparently unaware that they were union-associated.
All of this allegedly started when the company changed its Slack policies and removed several channels, causing employees to shift to a Discord server. Union members would eventually use it to organize and deny the discussion of confidential information. Stay tuned for more updates on whether the case will go to trial.
