220 Rockstar staff sign letter to management calling for “immediate reinstatement” of fired workers

Over 200 staff at GTA 6 developers Rockstar North have signed a letter to management calling for the “immediate reinstatement” of 31 workers fired recently by the company. Rockstar claimed they fired these staffers for “gross misconduct”, subsequently accusing them of sharing confidential info publicly. UK union the IWGB, of which the fired staff were members, have accused Rockstar of union busting and filed legal claims against the company.

The union have also held protests outside Rockstar North and Take-Two’s UK offices.

Now, according to the IWGB, a letter signed by 220 staff at Edinburgh-based Rockstar North has been delivered to the studio’s management. The letter calls for the “immediate reinstatement” of the fired workers, and condemns the decision to boot them out of their jobs in the first place.

“It’s heartwarming to see so many of our colleagues supporting us and holding management to account – during a period where Rockstar want us to feel scared, my brave former colleagues are marching straight up to our boss’s door and demanding our voices are heard and not backing down,” said an anonymous member of the fired Rockstar staff in the union’s press release. “It’s clear to everyone close to this situation that this is a blatant, unapologetic act of vicious union busting. Rockstar employs so many talented game developers, all of whom are crucial to making the games we put out.”

Meanwhile, IWGB organiser Fred Carter called the firings an “Amazon-style act of union-busting unprecedented in the games industry”. More union protests against Rockstar are planned in the very near future, with an 8AM rally outside Take Two’s London office and a 4PM CET protest outside the company’s Paris headquarters – the latter staged by the French STJV (Le Syndicat des Travailleureuses du Jeu Vidéo) union – set to take place on November 14th. There’s also a protest set to take place at 6PM on November 18th outside the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood, Edinburgh, timed to coincide with a cross-party parliamentary group meeting about the Scottish games industry.

GTA 6 remains a spectre now lurking on November 19th, 2026, following its most recent delay around the time news of the firings broke.