In a Glasgow courtroom, a question older than any single industry is being asked anew: when workers organize, and consequences follow, where does cause end and coincidence begin? Thirty-one employees of Rockstar Games, contributors to one of the most anticipated entertainment releases in history, were dismissed in 2025 — and a tribunal now weighs whether that dismissal was discipline or retaliation. The case unfolds against the backdrop of a $3 billion game and a labor movement seeking recognition before its moment passes.
Rockstar Games worker claims fired staff were placed on 'watch list' after union petition
31 employees were dismissed from Rockstar Games in 2025, with 23 Scottish-based workers pursuing tribunal claims for alleged unlawful termination related to union activity.
Maybe the start of them keeping an eye on things
Mark
So the core claim here is that Rockstar fired people for trying to organize, not for what they actually did on Discord?
Mimi
That's what the workers are arguing. Oram says there was a watch list after the petition. But Rockstar says the Discord posts themselves—the confidential information that got shared—that's the real reason.
Luke
Here's the thing though: if 141 of 154 petition signers weren't fired, how do you build a watch list theory on that? The numbers don't obviously support it.
Mimi
Right, and Oram basically conceded that when pressed. He said maybe it was "the start" of monitoring, but he couldn't prove the petition caused the firings.
Mark
What was actually shared on Discord that was so confidential?
Mimi
The source doesn't specify. We know Rockstar says confidential company information was shared, but the actual content isn't detailed in the tribunal testimony so far.
Luke
That's a real gap. We're hearing one side say gross misconduct, the other side saying retaliation, but we don't actually know what information we're talking about.
Mark
And the timing—the petition was 2023, the firings were 2025. That's a two-year gap.
Mimi
Exactly. Which makes the causal link even harder to establish. A lot could have happened in between.
Luke
The tribunal will probably need to see internal emails, management decisions, the actual Discord posts. Right now it's mostly he-said-she-said.
Mark
How much does the GTA VI launch pressure matter here?
Mimi
It might. The game's huge—over $3 billion in preorders. If there was union organizing happening, management might have wanted it contained before the biggest release in the company's history.
Il Polso
- A dismissed worker testified that Rockstar placed petition signatories on a covert 'watch list,' suggesting the company began surveilling a specific group of staff after they raised concerns about remote work in 2023.
- Rockstar's legal team fired back with Discord messages containing disparaging language about managers, framing the firings as straightforward gross misconduct rather than any response to union organizing.
- The numbers create a fault line at the heart of the case: only 13 of the 154 petition signatories were eventually fired, a detail Rockstar argues dismantles the retaliation narrative.
- Twenty-three Scottish workers are pressing their claims through the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain, with the tribunal expected to run six weeks and Rockstar witnesses taking the stand in October.
- Current Rockstar employees are racing against the clock, pushing for official union recognition before Grand Theft Auto VI launches in November — a moment that could shift the power dynamics of the entire negotiation.
In a Glasgow courtroom, a question older than any single industry is being asked anew: when workers organize, and consequences follow, where does cause end and coincidence begin? Thirty-one employees of Rockstar Games, contributors to one of the most anticipated entertainment releases in history, were dismissed in 2025 — and a tribunal now weighs whether that dismissal was discipline or retaliation. The case unfolds against the backdrop of a $3 billion game and a labor movement seeking recognition before its moment passes.
A Glasgow employment tribunal is examining one of the more consequential labor disputes in the games industry in recent memory: whether Rockstar Games unlawfully dismissed 31 workers because of their union activity. At the center of the case is Dayne Oram, a former employee who helped run a Discord forum used by roughly 300 Rockstar staff to discuss workplace conditions. He testified that after a 2023 petition about remote working was sent to leadership, management appeared to begin monitoring a particular group of employees — what he described as a 'watch list.'
Rockstar rejects that account entirely. The company's legal representative, Thomas Cordrey, presented Discord posts he characterized as unprofessional and damaging, arguing the 2025 dismissals were the result of gross misconduct — specifically, the unauthorized sharing of confidential information — and had nothing to do with union membership. Cordrey also highlighted that only 13 of the 154 petition signatories were among those eventually fired, pressing Oram on whether the petition could truly be considered the cause. Oram acknowledged he could not draw a direct line, though he held that it may have been 'the start of them keeping an eye on things.'
The dismissed workers had been involved in developing Grand Theft Auto VI, due for release on November 19, 2026, with over $3 billion already in preorders. Of the 34 workers terminated across the UK and Canada, 23 Scottish-based employees are pursuing claims through the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain. The tribunal, led by Judge Lucy Wiseman, is expected to last six weeks, with Rockstar's own witnesses scheduled to testify in October. In the meantime, current employees continue pushing for formal union recognition — hoping to secure it before the game that defined their working lives reaches the world.
A Glasgow employment tribunal is examining whether Rockstar Games, the maker of Grand Theft Auto, unlawfully terminated 31 workers for their union activity. The case centers on a petition filed in 2023 about remote working arrangements and what happened afterward.
Dayne Oram, one of the dismissed employees, testified on Friday that he believed the company placed workers on a "watch list" after the petition was sent to leadership. He told the tribunal that management appeared to begin monitoring a specific group of staff following that submission. Oram had been involved in setting up and moderating a Discord forum used by roughly 300 Rockstar employees to discuss workplace matters. The company disputes his account entirely, arguing that the 31 firings—which occurred in 2025—resulted from gross misconduct involving the unauthorized sharing of confidential information, not from union membership or activity.
The workers in question had been contributing to the development of Grand Theft Auto VI, scheduled for release on November 19, 2026. The game has already generated more than $3 billion in preorders and is expected to rank among the largest entertainment launches in history. Production is centered at Rockstar North, the company's Edinburgh office.
Much of the tribunal's focus has turned to what was discussed and shared within that Discord forum. Rockstar's legal representative, Thomas Cordrey, presented evidence of posts he characterized as breaking the forum's stated rules requiring "professional and constructive" communication. He read aloud several messages containing disparaging language about the company and individual managers. When confronted with this evidence, Oram acknowledged that some moderation decisions might have been handled differently in retrospect, but he explained that moderators had deliberately avoided being overly restrictive in order to allow open discussion.
Cordrey also pressed Oram on the connection between the 2023 petition signatories and those eventually fired. Of the 154 people who signed the remote work petition, only 13 were later dismissed—a fact Cordrey used to suggest the petition itself was not the determining factor. Oram maintained that the petition may have been "the start of them keeping an eye on things," though he could not establish a direct causal link.
In total, 34 Rockstar workers were terminated across the UK and Canada in 2025. Of the 31 based in Scotland, 23 are pursuing claims through the tribunal, represented by the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain. Three Canadian workers are not participating in the proceedings. The tribunal, overseen by Judge Lucy Wiseman, is expected to run for approximately six weeks, with testimony from Rockstar witnesses scheduled for October.
Rockstar Games issued a statement reaffirming its position: the dismissals were for gross misconduct related to the sharing of confidential company information, not union activity. The company said it would "defend them vigorously before the tribunal." Meanwhile, current Rockstar employees are in ongoing negotiations with management, hoping to secure official union recognition before Grand Theft Auto VI launches in November.
Citazioni salienti
Individuals across the UK and Canada were dismissed for gross misconduct following the sharing of confidential company information, not because of alleged trade union membership or activity.— Rockstar Games spokesperson
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