Late last week, allegations emerged against Rockstar Games claiming that the publisher had laid off over 30 employees in an attempt to suppress union activity.
Rockstar had initially stated that the layoffs were due to “gross misconduct.” On Wednesday, the company provided a more detailed explanation, clarifying that the dismissals were the result of leaking confidential information.
“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,” a Rockstar spokesperson told Bloomberg. “This was in no way related to people’s right to join a union or engage in union activities.”
Rockstar’s parent company, Take-Two Interactive, had terminated over 30 employees on October 31. The Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) condemned the action as a “ruthless act of unionbusting.”
The affected workers had been part of a private trade union chat on Discord, where they discussed unionization efforts at Rockstar.
As of now, the IWGB has not commented on Rockstar’s latest statement. Shacknews has reached out to the union for a response and will provide updates as more information becomes available.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146702/rockstar-games-layoffs-november-2025-confidential-information