The maker of blockbuster video game series Grand Theft Auto is set to face legal action over claims it unfairly dismissed 31 members of staff last year who had been working on the latest instalment of the series, Grand Theft Auto 6.
An independent employee trade union representing the former employees, The Independent Workers of Great Britain (IWGB), said Rockstar Games will appear before Glasgow Employment Tribunal from 10 September for a hearing running until 16 October as it faces allegations over the dismissals in October.
The IWGB is alleging the members of staff were “targeted for their union activities” as well as making allegations over the manner in which they were let go, which according to the group was “unlawful” and “without disciplinary process or right of appeal”.
The trade union is also alleging the video games studio “compiled and used lists” of the employees names “for the purpose of discriminating against them”, effectively blacklisting them.
The hearing follows an interim ruling in June in which a judge struck out Edinburgh-based Rockstar Games’ application to remove the blacklisting allegations from the claim.
According to the trade union, the employees who were in the office that day were “called into meetings, told they were being fired with immediate effect and escorted from the building”, whilst allegedly those not at the office premises were “informed during phone calls lasting around two minutes before being locked out of their work accounts.”
The legal action is taking place alongside ongoing negotiations between the Grand Theft Auto maker and the IWGB over formal recognition of working conditions for games developers.
In June the IWGB said it was calling on Rockstar Games to officially address issues around pay transparency, overtime expectations, and flexible working arrangements for the games developers.
“We believe Rockstar has tried to get away with Grand Theft Employment Rights. After a year of fighting to get answers, we hope this tribunal will finally back them into a corner and bring the truth to light,” Alex Marshall, president of the IWGB Union, said.
GTA 6 leak ahead of launch ‘heartbreaking’
The latest instalment of the blockbuster game is expected to be the most successful video game launch of the decade and is due to be released in November after delays in releasing official updates on the launch.
However, in August, Rockstar Games issued a statement addressing a series of leaked videos of the game despite not addressing the leaks when they appeared a week before.
The video game studio said the leaks were “heartbreaking” for the company who had spent around 8 years working on Grand Theft Auto 6, and that it was “not how we intended for you to see the game after all this time.”
Rockstar Games were contacted for comment.