ROCKSTAR GAMES TRIBUNAL HEARS DISMISSAL CLAIMS LINKED TO UNION ACTIVITY

A worker dismissed by Rockstar Games told an employment tribunal in Glasgow that he believed employees were placed on a "watch list" after signing a petition about remote working in 2023. Dayne Oram gave evidence on the first day of proceedings examining whether the Grand Theft Auto developer unlawfully fired staff for trade union activity. Rockstar disputes the claims, stating that workers were dismissed for gross misconduct following the sharing of confidential company information, not because of union membership or activity. Oram said the company "kept an eye" on a small group of employees who were union members after the petition was handed to leadership in spring 2023.

According to one report, approximately 150 Rockstar employees signed the petition about working from home, with between 15 and 20 of those signatories being union members. Another report states that 31 employees were dismissed, whilst a separate account indicates some 34 workers were believed to have been sacked in October 2025, with 23 taking part in the employment tribunal. Most dismissed staff were based at Rockstar North in Edinburgh, with others based in Canada. Much of the case centres on discussions within a Discord forum used by about 300 Rockstar employees. Oram was involved in setting up the forum and helped moderate it; Rockstar's legal representatives argued that forum rules requiring "professional and constructive" posts were "routinely broken" by employees making disparaging remarks about management.

Oram told the tribunal that the petition formed "the basis of a watch list" for people carrying out union organising activities. He stated that dismissals were connected to other union activities beyond the petition itself, rather than the petition alone being the sole reason. The workers were involved in producing Grand Theft Auto VI, scheduled for release on 19 November 2025. Oram is being represented at the hearing by the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain.