British Prime Minister comments on GTA 6 Firings

At the end of October, the shooting from 31 Grand Theft Auto 6 developers at Rockstar Games alerted Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, who discussed the matter after an MP raised their concerns. Starmer said the pending proceedings against GTA 6 the developer and publisher was “deeply concerned” and said ministers would look into the matter.

In late October 2025, Rockstar Games North fired 31 former employees from the team GTA 6 development team. The developer subsequently claimed that the reason for their release was some alleged leaks of Rockstar secrets through a Discord server run by members of the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB), which included union members not employed by Rockstar Games. Some of the discussions that took place on the IWGB Discord were about union resources and discussions about pay and working conditions with various companies. Before the shots were fired, Rockstar Games cleaned up several sections of their Slack server to avoid “distractions” at work.

Stranger Things Star pokes Fun at Grand Theft Auto 6 Delay

After the latest Grand Theft Auto 6 delay, Stranger Things star Gaten Matarazzo jokes about how long fans have been waiting to play the sequel.

Rockstar attracts the Prime Minister's attention

After Rockstar explained their reasons GTA 6 layoffs and denied claims he was involved in union-busting, a British government official shared his concerns with the Prime Minister. Chris Murray, local MP for Rockstar North's Edinburgh office, discussed the Rockstar situation with Starmer on 10 December. Murray said he had previously met with Rockstar North after the IWGB's union busting allegations came to light. Murray said: “When I met with Rockstar, they failed to reassure me that they were following labor law and I share the concern about union busting.” After being asked by Murray whether all companies must comply with UK employment law, Starmer said: “It is a deeply worrying case.” Starmer said every worker had the right to join a union and that he would let ministers look further into the Rockstar case.

Weeks after 31 ex GTA 6 employees were fired, the IWGB filed legal claims against Rockstar Games, accusing the company of union busting. The IWGB sided with the former members GTA 6 development team who said they were fired from their jobs for trying to unionize. The union claimed that Rockstar Games unfairly fired and blacklisted its former employees. The IWGB said the legal claims would go to monetary compensation and relief against Rockstar, and that the union would use various attorneys, case workers and legal officers to support its case. As of this writing, the IWGB's lawsuit against Rockstar is an ongoing matter.

The Aftermath of Rockstar's Actions

Following the controversial layoffs of Rockstar Games, several former employees and union activists protested outside Rockstar's offices in Edinburgh, Scotland on November 6. A few days later, on November 13, the IWGB announced that 220 Rockstar employees had signed a joint letter to company management demanding that Rockstar reinstate 31 former employees. GTA 6 employees immediately. The letter was followed by further protests outside Take Two's London and Paris offices on 14 November, along with another protest outside Rockstar North's offices in Edinburgh on 18 November. However, Rockstar remained steadfast in its decision to lay off 31 former employees.

The firings happened just days before Rockstar announced it GTA 6 it will be pushed back to November 19, 2026, as the company claimed the project needed more polish to meet the standards of its fans. While Rockstar Games denied that the delay and the firings were related, Take-Two's stock fell nearly 10% after Rockstar decided to push back. GTA 6launch within six months. Since the case against Rockstar by the IWGB is an ongoing situation, it remains to be seen how the situation will play out in the long term.