Sir Keir Starmer vows to investigate 'deeply concerning' sacking of 30 Grand Theft Auto developers

The Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB) told LBC that 31 workers at the UK-based gaming giant were fired in what they described as “the most blatant and ruthless act of union busting in the history of the games industry".

The workers were discussing unionisation in a private forum, the IWGB told LBC.

Rockstar, for its part, claims the employees were sacked for sharing confidential information in a public channel, an allegation they staunchly reject.

The sackings were recently raised during Prime Minister’s Questions, with Sir Keir describing the allegations against Rockstar as “deeply concerning.”

"Every worker has the right to join a trade union and we're determined to strengthen workers rights and ensure they don't face unfair consequences for being part of a union,” the PM said.

“Our ministers will look into the particular case.”

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“We steadfastly say that that's not true,” Spring McParlin-Jones, Chair of the IWGB, told LBC.

“The places being referred to weren't public, they were absolutely private channels made up almost entirely of Rockstar employees, plus a handful of union representatives.”

Pointing to a previous GTA 6 leak that made headlines, they added: “The idea that like 30 plus people have been leaking information and none of that has come to light.

“I think it's just beggar's belief.”

McParlin-Jones added the IWGB is exploring legal options to get the employees reinstated.

LBC has reached out to Rockstar to comment, but the gaming giant told Bloomberg: "Last week, we took action against a small number of individuals who were found to be distributing and discussing confidential information in a public forum, a violation of our company policies.”

These sackings came just days before Rockstar announced the latest delay of the much-anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6, which is expected to make somewhere in the region of $10billion when it launches next November.

Industry insiders have insisted the delay has no connection to the sackings, but McParlin-Jones suggests a lack of workers' rights in the gaming industry plays a central role in the ever-increasing number of setbacks studios face.

“We are seeing unrealistic expectations placed on workers and there's kind of this idea that ‘if we need to get more work done, then we'll just work people harder’.

“I think that's becoming less and less sustainable.

“Something that we've seen a lot of in the union is that there are a lot of people leaving the industry right now.”

Rockstar has previously come under fire for engaging in what the gaming industry calls “crunch” - a practice of overworking employees in the run-up to the release of the game.

But McParlin-Jones insists the developer has made progress on this front despite the going unionisation row.

“I know there has been reporting that they have cut down on crunch culture a lot, which is incredible.

“But we're still seeing worker exploitation, we're still seeing exploitation of passion.”

And unionisation across the games industry is good for consumers too, McParlin-Jones added.

“I think a unionised industry would be a much more sustainable industry.

“It's an industry where people aren't forced put through layoffs on a regular basis.

“It's an industry where people are able to build careers without having to burn out and leave to a different career.

“So when our members achieve wins in workplaces that has a ripple effect and that helps the entirety of the working class.”