Rockstar GamesThe UK government is stepping in after Rockstar Games fired more than 30 GTA 6 developers in a move Prime Minister Keir Starmer called “deeply concerning.”
The cuts hit staff in Edinburgh, Dundee, Lincoln, and Toronto at the end of October. Former employees say they were dismissed as part of a union-busting crackdown.
Rockstar denies that claim, insisting the firings were for “gross misconduct” tied to leaking confidential information in a private Discord chat.
Those dismissed reportedly included senior artists, animators, QA testers, programmers, designers, and producers. One verified employee told GTAForums the cuts could push GTA 6’s release even further back and that company morale hit “rock bottom.”
DexertoUK PM says government investigating Rockstar’s GTA 6 dev firings
The situation escalated after protests outside Rockstar’s offices. During Prime Minister’s Questions on December 10, Scottish Labour MP Chris Murray pressed the government to act.
“The video games company Rockstar, in my constituency last month, fired 31 employees without providing evidence or union representation. The IWGB alleges union busting,” Murray said. “Does the Prime Minister agree that all companies, regardless of profit and size, must follow UK employment law and all workers have the right to join a union?”
Starmer agreed. “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.”
He confirmed that ministers will “look into the particular case” and keep Murray updated.
The controversy arrives as GTA 6 continues dominating global headlines. The game’s delay from May to November 2026 even sparked outrage inside the Polish parliament. Witold Tumanowicz of the KWiN opposition party used his floor time to call the postponement “a huge scandal.”
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“Frankly, if people don’t take to the streets after something like this, I don’t know what will happen,” he said.
Rockstar GamesGTA VI is considered by many to be the most anticipated video game ever made and is expected to make tens of billions over its lifetime.
The delay from May to November will also reportedly cost the company over $60M in development costs.
Reports indicate that GTA 6 is in the final stages of development and is content complete with the delay to ensure VI can launch in a bug-free state and give players the game they “expect and deserve.”