Rockstar Games is currently navigating two entirely different battles with its own workforce at once, and both broke into the open within the space of two weeks. Today, workers submitted a formal request for voluntary recognition of the IWGB Game Workers Union.
Two weeks ago, an employment tribunal ruled against Rockstar in a separate legal fight over the dismissal of 31 union members last October. Taken together, this is one of the more significant moments in UK games industry labour history, arriving at the exact moment Rockstar needs the world's attention on GTA 6, not on how it treats its own staff.
The Union Recognition Bid
Workers at Rockstar's UK studios – spanning Edinburgh, Dundee, Lincoln, Leeds, and London – have submitted a request for voluntary union recognition. If Rockstar accepts, the studio becomes only the second UK games company with a recognized union, following IWGB members at ZA/UM achieving the same milestone in October 2025. Recognition would give workers formal channels for collective bargaining, alongside additional workplace protections for union representatives and members.
IWGB has been organizing at Rockstar since 2019, and the union now claims to represent a significant proportion of the workforce across every site. They point to concrete...
