Rockstar provides evidence in union-related court proceedings

Details have emerged about evidence presented by Rockstar that justified the termination of 34 employees for alleged gross misconduct, as disclosed after a preliminary UK employment tribunal in Glasgow. This tribunal, however, denied the request for interim relief sought by the affected employees.

The tribunal proceedings revealed that the alleged sharing of "confidential information" took place on a Discord server managed by the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB). According to reports by People Make Games, Rockstar's legal representative, Andrew Burns, opposed reading these communications in court. Nonetheless, as Rockstar did not impose reporting restrictions, the evidence could be reviewed by participating parties.

The classified evidence included dialogues about recent policy changes, such as a limit preventing more than five employees from taking simultaneous leave. One individual remarked on a large session, saying: "[Rockstar] mentioned a large session we did today being difficult to do, but that was 32 players. Not sure how that was difficult."

Another employee criticized the new policy by stating that with multiple studios of QA testers, scheduling a 32-player session should be manageable, allowing employees time off.

PMG reported that Rockstar was greatly troubled by the sharing of sensitive information regarding the unannounced live service game's features, as the particulars about player numbers had not been publicized.

Rockstar's evidence also highlighted a Discord message leading to an employee's dismissal, which cited a lack of crunch within Rockstar North's QA department. The message read: "Nothing I've heard in North QA! Will keep you updated if anything changes."

Jennifer Kolbe, Rockstar's head of publishing, stated in her testimony that this message revealed working patterns that might indicate the development stage of Grand Theft Auto 6, potentially affecting team cooperation.

The submitted evidence also indicated that Scott Alsworth, a game writer and narrative designer who is part of the IWGB's Game Workers branch, was allegedly "lurking" on the server. Alsworth, who has a background with Bohemia Interactive and founded the studio Cerberus Creative, was reportedly invited to the server due to his role in the union.

Rockstar pointed out Alsworth's connection to six gaming articles he wrote for The Morning Star between 2022 and 2025, including a piece discussing the delay of GTA 6. Due to his journalistic activities, Rockstar considered his server participation a potential threat to the company's interests.